Destroy the Human Keys
by LavenderQuetzal
Summary: 13-year-old Lena never tried to pretend her life was normal. She knew she was named after a naiad, she knew her parents were a unicorn and an Eternal. But what she din't know was that the Society had been secretly alive all these years, and wanted revenge
1. I Don't Have a Last Name

"Lena…what's your last name, hon?"

Lena shifted in her seat and folded her arms across her chest. "I don't have one."

The teacher, a tall woman with brown hair done up in a bun on top of her head, looked up from the bright pink attendance sheet, peering at the new student through bejeweled eyeglasses. "Excuse me?"

"I don't have a last name," Lena repeated. "I suppose you could use my mother's maiden name—Sorenson. Well, I guess that's still her last name. But my dad doesn't have a last name."

"No last name?" the teacher clarified. "Well, that's…different."

"Well, that's probably because _I'm_ different," Lena replied, sitting up straighter.

A few people chuckled. The teacher adjusted her glasses and continued taking roll.

As Lena walked away from her last class, one of the other girls approached her.

"I'm Alexis," the girl introduced herself. "You know, it's really cool that you don't have a last name. I wish I was like that. I've always hated my last name. Want to know what it is? It's really embarrassing. Wait, you probably already heard it when Mrs. Dawson was taking roll. Do you remember what it is? I'll tell you anyway. It's Blaskenjoom. Isn't that just the worst? When I get old enough I'm gonna legally change my last name to something more normal. Like Miller or Smith. Then I'll just be normal instead of Blaskenjoom. If you could choose your last name, what would you choose?"

Alexis Blaskenjoom stopped to take a breath, and then continued with one last question. "Why doesn't your dad have a last name?"

As she resumed walking, Lena considered Alexis's question, trying to put herself in this other girl's shoes. How would she react if she had just met a girl with no last name, who claimed her dad was a 700-plus-year-old unicorn? She'd probably think she was kidding. Or crazy. Or both.

"I don't know," Lena decided. "I suppose…I guess maybe he had a last name he didn't like, so he just got rid of it."

"Maybe that's what I'll do. Then I could just be all mysterious, the girl without a last name. Well, you've already taken that spot. Plus your first name helps with all the mystery. I think you're the only Lena in the whole school, but there's like four Alexises. Maybe I'll change my first name too, so I can be someone entirely new…"

Lena silently thanked the appearance of a bathroom she could duck into to escape the other girl's chatter. In a moment, Alexis Blaskenjoom's voice faded as she continued down the hall, not noticing the absence of her audience.

The door of the girl's bathroom clicked shut as Lena leaned against it, automatically turning off the lights. To a normal person, the room would be pitch-black, but not to Lena.

Seeing in the dark was a trait she had inherited from her mother. Nothing was ever truly dark to her—only dim. A good skill to have (if you could call it a skill) if you wanted to hide from overly loquacious seventh-graders and curious teachers in an unlit restroom.

Lena walked over to the sinks—or, more importantly, the mirrors above them. She examined the pearly, metallic-looking tint to her white-blonde hair and blue eyes, and the small silver line on the side of her forehead, an inch-long streak across her right eyebrow. A scar she had gotten five years ago—the first time she realized she wasn't normal.

It had happened on her eighth birthday, when her parents had taken her to visit her uncle at his mansion and woodland property, which everyone called Fablehaven. The party was over, and Lena was wearing some of her presents: a thin, bejeweled, elegant gold headband from her mother; some blue dress-up fairy wings from her uncle (dear Uncle Seth thought it was a wonderful joke, Lena had not known why, but it earned him a punch on the shoulder from her mom); and a necklace with an irregular-shaped but beautifully colored pendant from one of her mother's friends (she would later learn that the friend was a dragon, and the pendant was one of his scales). In her left pocket were three batteries from a couple of her uncle's friends (her mom said she was not allowed to meet them yet), and in her right was a large gold coin from her dad (a communication device—but Lena didn't know that yet). The grown-ups were talking and playing a board game in the living room, and Lena felt upset that they had allowed her to be bored on her birthday.

"Having fun watching everyone else do something boring?"

Lena jumped with surprise and turned around, the momentary fear evaporating when she saw it was Uncle Seth.

"No," she admitted, adjusting her headband. She pulled one of the batteries out of her pocket.

"How come I'm not allowed to meet your friends?" she asked.

Seth smiled. "Well, Newel and Doren probably wouldn't be good friends for an eight-year-old fairy princess."

"Newel and Doren?" Lena asked skeptically. "Those are weird names."

"They're weird friends."

Lena smiled and put the battery back in her pocket. "Is that why they gave me batteries? Just because they're weird?"

"Partially," Seth replied. "It's also probably because I gave them a lot of batteries when I first met them. It was probably about…oh, fifteen to twenty years ago."

Lena's eyes widened. "Twenty _years?_"

Seth nodded.

"Wow, you're really old, Uncle Seth," Lena blurted.

Seth laughed, even though Lena didn't think it was funny.

After a moment, Seth asked if Lena was thirsty.

"Yeah! I haven't drank anything since the party," Lena announced.

"Want some chocolate milk?"

"I love chocolate milk!"

Seth opened the fridge and pulled out a clear glass bottle full of brown liquid. There was a piece of masking tape with the word "Viola" written on it. He got out two glasses and filled them both with chocolate milk from the bottle, giving one to Lena. She quickly guzzled it down, while Seth took smaller sips of his.

Seth and Lena peeked in at the other adults—they were still playing their "bored game", as Seth called it. Lena loved that her uncle could look like a grown-up, but still be fun and funny. Afterwards, Seth said, "You know, we've still got an hour or two before dark. What do you say we go explore the woods? I'll show you the most special thing about Fablehaven."

Lena happily agreed.

Lena checked her watch. School had been out for about twenty minutes. She opened the door, automatically turning on the light. The fluorescent bulbs suddenly brightening surprised her and hurt her eyes for a moment, but then she adjusted. The hallway was quiet; no squeaking of the janitor's cart, no clopping of a teacher's high heels. Cautious, not wanting to be caught in school so late after the end of classes, Lena stepped out of the bathroom and carefully closed the door. She took her communication coin out of her pocket and rubbed it, causing the gold surface to subtly glow. Her father's voice came into her mind.

_Where are you? You're almost half an hour late. Are you okay?_

Typical overprotective dad response. Lena supposed even unicorns weren't immune to becoming stuffy adults. _I'm fine, Dad. I just need to be picked up. I'm still in the school, right by the bathrooms._

There was a pause, and then her dad replied, _All right, I'll be over in about ten minutes. Stay where you are. If anything happens, contact me right away._

_Yeah, Dad. Whatever._

Lena put the coin back in her pocket and sat down on the dirty floor of the school hallway. She fingered her scar, remembering the naiad in the pond when Uncle Seth had taken her to "explore the woods" on her eighth birthday. She recalled going out onto the docks and peering into the water, despite her uncle's warnings. When she saw a pretty face in the water, framed by flowing black hair, Lena had reached out to touch the "mermaid", the naiad's pale hand had shot out of the water and tried to pull Lena under the water. Seth shouted out, and suddenly a thick layer of ice coated the pond, trapping the naiad. It had let go of Lena, and Lena leaned down to get a closer look. The seemingly defenseless creature scratched Lena's face with its long fingernail, drawing blood that was not red, but silver, like her father's. At first the silver blood and her uncle's ability to magically freeze the lake confused and scared Lena, but after returning to the house and explaining to Lena's parents, everyone went home angry at Seth—except Lena, who was still confused.

Lena looked at her watch again. Her dad should be coming soon. Lena went to her locker and took out her backpack and things (after three failed attempts at her new combination lock) and started heading out to the front parking lot.

Lena scanned the rows of cars for her father's dark blue Stratus. When she found it, she started running towards it. She opened the passenger door and slid into the shotgun seat, quickly buckling up.

"Hi, Dad," Lena greeted nonchalantly, taking off her backpack and dropping it on the floor. "Sorry I'm late; there was this other girl that was pestering me, so I hid in the bathroom for a little while. I guess I was in there a little bit too long."

"Oh, not too long at all, sweetheart," her dad replied, turning the keys in the ignition and shifting the car into reverse.

As they stopped at a red light a minute or two later, Lena pointed out, "Ooh, new keychains. Where'd you get them?"

There were six new charms on her dad's keychain—a silver star, and five tiny plastic figurines. Lena couldn't tell exactly what they were supposed to be. Lena fingered one of the figurines, trying to figure out what it was.

"This one's cool," Lena said casually. "It almost looks like…"

Lena's contented smile vanished as she realized what the figurines were. They were five little people—all with silver stars painted on their terror-stricken faces and red arrows in their chests. The one on Lena's finger was a woman with light brown hair and green eyes. She was wearing a dark blue evening dress—a miniature, plastic version of her mother's favorite gown.

The figurine was of Lena's mother, shot through the heart with a crimson arrow.

"That there," Lena's dad said, referring to the figurine Lena was holding, "is target number one."

The light turned green, and the car moved forward.

Lena looked panickedly into the face of who she thought was her father. But her father did not have red eyes, or such an evil-looking smile.

"Now," said the driver, "if I was an Eternal with a young daughter, what would I do in order to keep her from being killed? Send an army to save her? Try a small rescue? Or perhaps…consent to her kidnapper's wishes and be killed in her place?"


	2. Changelings and Charmers

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Fablehaven or any of its characters. Which is good because if I did the books wouldn't be nearly as good as they really are.**

"I _told _you we should have homeschooled her."

Bracken put the coin back in his pocket. "Just because she's late doesn't mean she needs to quit the school. She just said another girl was pestering her—probably inviting her to her house."

"Seventh-grade girls don't work that way," Kendra disagreed. "The new girl doesn't get invited to another girl's house for at least a month or two. Besides, remember when I told you about the kobold that was at my school years ago?"

"If Lena had encountered a kobold, she would have told me. I just need to go pick her up," Bracken said, heading over to the hooks on the wall where he hung his keys.

Kendra looked out the window, towards the driveway. "Um, honey?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's your car?"

Bracken turned and looked out the window. His car was gone, and his keys as well.

"How is that possible?" he asked. "No one else has been here since I dropped Lena off at school this morning."

"Except for Warren and Vanessa coming over for lunch," Kendra pointed out.

"Warren and Vanessa wouldn't steal my car." Bracken headed over to the door to check the crime scene. "Even if she is a blix."

Kendra resisted rolling her eyes at her husband. "Oh, you can't still have a grudge against Vanessa. It's not her fault unicorns and blixes are enemies."

Bracken scanned the driveway and sidewalk. "The point is, my car is gone and we don't—" He stopped, noticing something on the doorstep. "Yes we do."

"Should I call the police?" Kendra asked.

"The police can't help us with this." Bracken bent down and picked up a couple strands of short purple hair. "There was a changeling here."

"A what?"

Bracken took the hair back inside and placed it on the kitchen table. "A changeling. Ugly little things, extremely rare. Probably five or six in the entire world. Imagine a furry purple frog with two legs and fangs, red eyes. If one bites you, it can take your shape."

"Like a stingbulb," Kendra clarified. "But an animal."

"Extremely similar. The only flaw is that the red eyes always stay the same."

"Wouldn't that be a giveaway? Red eyes are pretty noticeable."

"You'd be surprise how easily colored contacts can cover that up. But like I said, changelings are extremely rare. And they usually travel in pairs."

"One in the shape of a friend in order to deliver another to bite the real target," Kendra inferred.

Bracken checked his arms and noticed two silver puncture marks. "Which would be me."

After trying to jump out of the car (resulting in nothing but a really bad road rash), trying to contact her dad (her coin was taken away), refusing to move (she was forcibly picked up and carried), biting and screaming (they had gagged her), trying to stomp on her kidnappers' feet (ending up with really sore legs), and attempting a break for it as soon as they set her down (which worked until they grabbed her and threw her into a locked closet), Lena was confused, hurt, completely alone, and wishing that her mother's job didn't involve people wanting to kill her.

"You know this isn't gonna work," Lena yelled. "You idiots are totally gonna get creamed. I've got, like, a bajillion friends that are gonna whip your sorry butts."

No response.

"I bet I've got all the creatures of light in the world on my side. And probably some dragons. And my mom's brother can get all kinds of dark creatures to beat you up. Basically the whole world's against you."

"I'm beginning to consider killing you right now," warned a cold male voice. "I may lose an advantage, but the silence will be worth it."

"I'm not scared of you," Lena lied, taking pride that three years of drama class had eliminated the effect of real fear in her voice. "In fact, you should be really scared of me. You guys are totally gonna die. Really painfully. Maybe just the sight of my rescue team will scare you to death, you cowards."

The man outside the door replied by thunking a large knife through the wood of the door. Lena was grateful for her decision to move to the back of the closet.

"Ha, ha, you just weakened the only thing keeping me in," Lena gloated with a confidence she didn't feel.

"The next time you speak, it will pierce your heart."

Lena sneered. "Oh yeah? Well what if I don't feel like shutting up?" she muttered, careful not to let the person on the other side of the door hear her. "I'm gonna speak this whole closet up, and you're not gonna do anything. You know why? Cus I'm not even gonna give you the pleasure of hearing my voice. I'm gonna talk, talk, talk, and you can't do anything to stop me, you…"

She then proceeded to describe her kidnappers with several words she knew her parents would not approve of, still keeping her voice down. When she was done (a good two or three minutes later), Lena examined her surroundings. There was no light on—which didn't really matter to her. She was inside a relatively normal closet, with a shelf right above a hanger rack. Other than Lena and the knife embedded in the door, there was nothing else she could see in the closet.

"Maybe there's some way out up there," Lena whispered to herself. She wrapped her fingers around the cold, rusty bar above her and braced her feet against the wall, pulling up with her arms and pushing with her legs. Soon she was able to see over the plain white wooden shelf.

Two large, ice-colored eyes stared at her, set in a dark face, framed by long inky-black hair. "Is it true what you say?" asked the face.

Startled, Lena yelped and let go of the bar, falling on her rear on the floor of the closet.

A soft thump sounded as the person on the shelf jumped to the ground. It was girl, looking to be about nine years old. She stared straight ahead, her eyes clouded with grey, and her hair hanging unevenly around her face and shoulders. She was wearing a small, ragged black robe. The girl reached out and gently touched Lena's cheek, her thin, coffee-colored finger as cold as a metal post in the dead of winter, then quickly withdrew her hand as if she had been burned.

"You are so warm," the girl said in a small, fearful voice. "You saw me. It is dark. Is it true that your uncle controls creatures of darkness?"

Lena nodded, but then she realized that the little girl was blind. "Yeah. Why?"

"The shadows avoid you," the girl pointed out. "The light tucked in corners of everywhere, it all comes to you. How can your family be dark, yet you are so full of the light?"

"Well, it's just my uncle that's got darkness powers," Lena answered. "He's a shadow charmer. The rest of my family's pretty much as light as you can get."

The girl started crying.

"Oh hey, hey," Lena said, trying to sound comforting. "What's the matter? Did I say something wrong?"

"I have never known there to be others like me," the girl whispered through her tears. "Except one—and he is the reason they took me. They're going to kill him—they're going to kill all of them, they will destroy the five. You must know—you know the five. How many of the five do you know?"

"You mean…the Eternals?" Lena inferred. "Who do you know? Which one did they take you for?"

"The one for you is very close to you. Family. Eternals cannot have families…" the girl whispered.

"She's my mom," Lena explained. "Until now, the family thing seemed to be working for her pretty well."

"You were her life. Now you will be her death," the girl said. "And I will be his."

Lena frowned. "Way to think on the bright side."

"What is your name?"

"Lena. Yours?"

The girl sat on the floor. "Perhaps I had one years ago. It has been stolen from me—everything has been stolen, except for him. They mean to torture me with his memory until I die, however soon that may be."

"Well, I need something to call you," Lena argued. "Something I can yell if we get separated during our escape."

"We won't escape."

"Joy," Lena decided. "Your new name is Joy."

"Why such a cheery title?"

"You need something to snap you out of your depression."

"We are trapped in a small, dark prison, about to be the death of all we love. What right do we have to be happy?"

"Exactly why your name is Joy."

Joy tested out her name by whispering it to herself a few times.

"See, doesn't that sound great?" Lena smiled. "It fits so well."

"I suppose it's better than no name at all."

"That's the spirit." Lena climbed back up to the shelf and pushed against the walls, searching for a way out.

Nothing.

"Any chance you know who's outside?" Lena asked. "Or some way to get past him?"

"They did not speak to me," Joy lamented. "If they had spoken, I would know. I hear the one outside. He is not familiar."

"Okay, no big deal," Lena said. "Honestly, I'm pretty comfortable. Even though I can't contact my dad. But my parents are pretty smart. They'll figure it all out."

Silently, Lena wished her words were as reassuring to herself as they were to the blind shadow charmer she had been imprisoned with.


	3. Remains of a Fallen Star

Kendra pulled into the school parking lot and quickly unbuckled. Her minivan was close to the only car in the parking lot, except for two vehicles belonging to school staff (Bracken didn't see why Kendra needed a car that seated seven when only three people ever rode in it, but Kendra insisted that a minivan was better for transporting groceries).

Bracken hurried out of the passenger side and they ran to the building. In their anxiety to find their daughter, he and Kendra nearly collided with a late-working teacher.

"Can I help you?" asked the teacher, adjusting her glasses.

"We're looking for our daughter," Kendra answered. "Lena. She's a seventh-grader, white-blonde hair, about yea high?"

"Oh, yes. The new girl. I saw her exit the building and go home several minutes ago. All the students have gone home," the teacher replied haughtily. "I don't know why any seventh-grader would still be here this late."

"They must have been coming for her," Bracken deduced. "She'll think it's me."

"Or they already have her," Kendra reasoned.

The teacher raised an eyebrow. "Do you need anything else?"

"Absolutely," Bracken stated. "Just not from you."

The teacher was left dumbfounded as Bracken and Kendra ran from the building.

"You drive," Kendra said to Bracken. "I've got to make a call."

As soon as the car pulled out of the parking lot, Kendra pulled out her phone and called her brother. Rain began to tap and patter on the roof of the minivan. Bracken turned on the windshield wipers.

"Hello?"

"Seth?"

"Hey, how's my favorite fairy princess? If you're calling about that email you got, it was all the satyrs. I know, you told me so."

"Now is not the time, Seth," Kendra replied, trying to see the road through the quickly growing rainstorm. "Lena's been captured."

"What? By who?"

"We don't know, but whoever it is has access to some really rare magical creatures," Kendra told him.

"Not some thug off the street, huh?" Seth said. "You got any leads?"

"None. Just that they're using changelings."

"I saw one of those once," Seth said. "Turns out there's a—"

Seth's voice was interrupted by a few short bleeps.

"Hold that thought, I've got a call waiting."

Kendra switched to the other caller. "Hello?"

"The evening star may have fallen, but falling stars always cast off surviving pieces."

"Excuse me? Who's this?"

Thunder cracked. The windshield wipers were at their strongest, but the droplets of water now shooting from the sky were overpowering.

"You knew the price. You knew the consequences. And yet, you chose to live with a constant axe hanging over your head."

"What? Who are you?"

Bracken glanced worriedly over at Kendra, but could not focus his attention on her for fear of losing control of the car in the storm.

"Lena lives, but not for long. On the night of October 21st, five people will perish in crimson flames. Whether your daughter is one of the condemned is up to you. The decision is yours: to give yourself and spare her life, or to live forever with her blood on your hands."

The phone fell from Kendra's trembling hand, hitting the floor of the car at the exact moment that lightning struck a few miles away.

"Choose wisely."

"Maybe we can pry the hanger bar out of the wall," Lena suggested, still searching for a weakness in her prison.

"No. I've tried," Joy said sadly.

"Prove it."

"What good would it do?"

"I don't know. Maybe it'll give me another idea to get out."

"There's no way out."

"How long have you been in here?"

"I can't remember."

"Yeesh. Food?"

"A few times since I arrived. They do not mean to starve us, but to use us as bait until the night of the streaking stars, when they will kill us and the five."

"'And'?" Lena asked, taking her hands off the bar. "But he said—Oh. Figures."

Lena sat down on the thin, worn carpeting. "Sooo…where're you from?" she asked, attempting to make smalltalk.

"I can't remember anything of myself. I can only remember him."

"May I ask again who 'he' is?"

"My brother. His name is Geteye."

"Where's he from?"

"Ethiopia. We were born there, and lived there as children before being sold into slavery."

"Isn't slavery illegal?"

"Perhaps it is now, but not eight hundred years ago."

Lena considered Joy's words. That meant she had to be at least eight hundred and nine years old. "Where were you taken? I mean, where were Geteye and you taken?"

Joy climbed up onto the shelf, where she was more comfortable. "Eastern Turkey. We were taken to a place full of dangerous animals and people that were not of this world. We both hated it because our masters were cruel and they did not care for us. Geteye did not act like a rebel, but he told me all of his plans to overthrow Yaşayan Serap."

"Overthrow what?"

"Yaşayan Serap. The name of the place we were taken. The words are Turkish for Living Mirage."


	4. A Third Prisoner

Lena was awakened by an apple and two pieces of bread falling on her head.

"Owww," she moaned. She picked up the apple. There was a small brown spot where it had collided with her head.

"Enjoy your meal," Joy said from the shelf where she sat. "The night of streaking stars is two days away."

"Where did this come from?" Lena asked, trying a bite of bread. It was stale.

"They feed us through a hole in the top."

"There's a hole in the ceiling? Why didn't you tell me? We can get out that way!"

"It is heavily guarded by spells and locks."

Lena sank to the floor and took a bite of the apple. It was hard and slightly sour, not entirely ripe yet.

"At least it's not rat meat," Lena tried to reassure herself.

"That is what they gave at Yaşayan Serap," Joy said, dangling her thin brown legs over the edge of the shelf. "I served it to the prisoners deep in the dungeons."

Lena sat up straighter. "I thought you said you couldn't remember anything of yourself."

"I cannot remember these things happening, but I can remember telling my brother about it."

"Doesn't that get annoying?"

"Perhaps."

Lena took another bite of the apple, hurting her teeth. "So you worked in the dungeons? My dad spent some time in those dungeons. Did you know him?"

"Who was he?"

"Bracken. A unicorn."

Joy smiled. "He came many years after we did. The son of the Fairy Queen. The one that didn't give up. He asked me to help him escape several times."

"Why didn't you?"

"Fear. Incapability. Guilt. Uncertainty."

"I get it. He's out now. Well, I guess that's obvious."

"I wish you could send him my congratulations."

Lena leaned back against the wall. "Yeah, me too."

Joy jumped down from the shelf. "There are footsteps approaching."

"What?" Lena asked. She crept over and put her ear on the wood of the door. Her captor had removed the knife and replaced it with several dozen layers of duct tape.

"Let go of me!" yelled the voice of a teenage boy. "When my dad finds out I'm gone, he's gonna track you down and you are going to—"

"Quiet, boy," said a female voice. It sounded like it belonged to a woman in her early twenties', and it had a slight accent that Lena recognized but couldn't quite place—Scottish, maybe?

The door flew open, flooding the little closet with white light that hurt Lena's eyes. A boy who looked about fourteen was shoved in before the door slammed closed again. The boy pounded against the door with his fists, and then with his shoulder.

"Careful," Lena warned. "When I yelled at them he put a knife through the door."

The boy let out a small scream of surprise. "Who's there? I've got a weapon and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Lena had forgotten that not everyone could see in the dark.

"Cool it, buddy. It's just me. A fellow prisoner. And you don't have a weapon."

"Can you see me?"

Lena said yes at the same time that Joy said no.

"Ah! Is there two of you?" the boy asked incredulously.

"I'm Lena, that's Joy," Lena said. "I can see you, she can't."

"How can you see me? It's pitch black in here."

"I can see in the dark. Family trait."

"Figures. Who are you again?"

"Lena. You?"

"Bradley Hutchinson. I'd shake hands if I could see you."

"I'm right in front of you. Just reach forward and—here—"

Lena took Bradley's hand. He pulled back at first at the feel of Lena's hand, but they shook.

"And this is Joy." Lena passed Bradley's hand to the blind girl, and they shook hands as well.

"Glad we all know each other," Bradley said, drawing away from Joy's icy touch. "Know any way to get out?"

"I've been trying," Lena said. "And she claims she has too, but she's given up. But if I knew a way out, don't you think I'd be out by now?"

"No need to get catty," Bradley defended.

"If you had some amazing special powers, however…"

"Special powers?"

"Well, I can see in the dark and talk to fairies," Lena explained. "And she has probably a whole bunch of awesome shadow charmer stuff she has yet to disclose—"

"They took my memories!"

"—and I _used _to have a magic coin to telepathically talk to my dad."

"Because who wouldn't want their dad lecturing them in their head."

"Well, do you got any powers?"

"If you count killing plants and getting stalked by lizards all the time."

"You get stalked by lizards?"

"My mom says it makes me special."

Lena counted her assets. A boy with a reptile problem, a blind, pessimistic shadow charmer with no memories, and a girl who could see in the dark.

"If this is what we have in here," she muttered to herself, "we've got a lot riding on the hopes of a rescue team."

The note rested between a bowl of grapes and a pitcher of pear juice on the table. It seemed too common and peaceful a place for a message of such evil to lie.

"Where?" the Sphinx whispered. "Where is she hidden?"

The knowledge that Aisha was alive was shocking enough. After centuries of a life such as his, the Sphinx thought there was nothing else that could surprise him. This letter proved him dreadfully wrong.

"They can't hold her for long," he muttered. "She won't consent to being held. But then again…"

He hadn't seen her for hundreds of years. He assumed she was dead. How could she have hidden from him so long? How could she still be out of his reach?

"No. I can't lose her again. I will find her."

Thunder rumbled, rattling the windows. Seth redialed Kendra's number. She answered on the first ring.

"Seth, is there anything special happening on October 21st?"

"What?"

"October 21st. Is there anything special happening?"

"Hold on, let me Google it."

Seth hurried over to his laptop and quickly booted it up, pulling up a search engine. He typed in "October 21st events".

"Um, historically or this year?"

"Whatever."

"St Eusebius ends his reign as Catholic Pope, Florence Nightingale is sent into the Crimean war as a nurse, first can-can performed in Paris…"

"How about this year?"

"There's a Detroit Talmer Bank marathon, a meteor shower, something called Biketoberfest in Daytona Beach—"

"Meteor shower? Like falling stars?"

"That's kind of what a meteor shower is. You okay? You sound kind of shaken up."

"That's the understatement of the year."

"Don't worry. We're gonna get Lena back. Her kidnappers won't know what hit them."

"It's not just that. They're going to kill us."

"'Us'?"

"Me. Lena. They're trying to destroy the Eternals."

"Again? Didn't they learn their lesson about demons?"

"I don't think this is about opening the demon prison. I think this is about revenge."

"Didn't they learn that lesson too?"

"Can we come over?"

"Of course. Why not?"

There was a pause where Seth assumed Kendra was telling Bracken to go to Fablehaven.

"We're on our way right now. Could you try to find out about the other Eternals so we can warn them?"

Seth smiled. "That is so like you. To make sure the other ones get warned."

"Is that bad?"

"It's your best quality. I'll learn what I can."

"Thanks so much. You're the best."

"Don't I know it. See you in a bit."

Seth hung up the phone and started a new Google search.


	5. Doomed by a Bobby Pin

**Author's Note: If anyone knows how to add page breaks, please tell me! My chapters are kind of confusing without them!**

Rain splattered down on Bracken's light jacket as he attempted to shield Kendra with it, to no avail. Lightning flashed in the distance, followed almost immediately by thunder. The screen door slammed open, partially by the howling wind and partially by Seth hurrying to get his sister and her husband inside from the storm.

"Did you get anything?" Bracken asked.

"You guys gave me about three minutes to look," Seth joked. "But yeah."

"How much?"

Seth grinned, inhaling sharply. "A whole family of Eternals. Kind of."

He opened a website on his laptop—a blog. On the top it read "Toddler Twins and a Teen" and below the title was a photo of a normal-looking family—a mother, a father, a teenage boy, and two little girls who looked about three years old.

"Remember when Navarog pretended to be Chuck Rose's son?" Seth asked.

Kendra sneered at the memory. "Ugh, don't remind me."

"Yeah, talk about love gone awry."

The comment earned Seth a smack on the back of the head.

"Ow. Sorry. Yeah, I probably deserved that."

"You were saying?" Bracken prompted.

Seth turned back to the blog. "Well, it turns out Chuck Rose had a younger sister, Layla. She and her husband Devon were some of the most reliable Knights of the Dawn when all of that was going on. Now they're both Eternals."

"Two Eternals in the same place, with kids and a popular blog?" Bracken asked skeptically. "That's kind of risky."

"No riskier than your family," Seth pointed out. "But look at this. It just got posted, like, an hour ago."

"_Minus a Teen_," Kendra read from the title.

_Horror has struck at the Hutchinson home: Bradley's missing! He was gone this morning at around 6:30 AM. I went up to his room to get him up for school, and he wasn't there! No one saw anyone come in or out of our house at the time he vanished. We've already called the police—they say he disappeared at about midnight, and they're looking into the case. Jane and Ella are freaking out—they miss their big brother! I can't get them to talk (other than screaming unintelligibly)…_

The post continued for a couple paragraphs, going into more details of where the Hutchinson family thinks Bradley might be and what they were doing in his absence. It closed with a plea to contact Devon and Layla if Bradley was found, and a link to the Facebook page they had created about it.

"They already got to these two," Bracken said dejectedly. "And we don't know where or even who the last one is."

"At least they can't get the Sphinx," Kendra said, trying to be hopeful. "If they're kidnapping the Eternal's loved ones…I don't think he's got any loved ones left."

When Lena remembered the bobby pin she had been using to keep her hair out of her face, she considered it a miraculous stroke of luck and scolded herself for forgetting. However, when she realized that she had no idea how to pick a lock, and that she was being kept in the closet with a deadbolt, Lena scolded herself for getting her hopes up for no reason. Eventually, she had reduced to trying to poke away the duct tape covering the closet's only weakness.

"You realize this is impossible," Bradley announced.

Lena turned. "What? Escaping?"

"This whole thing," the boy said. "There's no way you can really see in the dark. There's no such things as fairies. I don't even know what a shadow charmer is. I don't know why I got kidnapped or how that lady looked like my mom. I just wanna get out."

"You mean…they didn't tell you?"

"What?"

Lena looked up to where Joy was lying on the shelf. Somehow, the ancient little girl had fallen asleep on the hard, tiny space.

"Nobody told you about magic," Lena clarified.

"There's no such thing as magic."

"Actually, there is. And if there wasn't I wouldn't exist."

"What?"

"My dad's a unicorn. Long story. Anyway, someone close to you, probably in your family, is an Eternal. That means that they can only die from certain things—dragon fire, for example. Or magic swords. There's also this prison thing for demons—

"Demons?"

"—another long story. But it can't open unless all five of the Eternals are dead. And apparently, these guys are trying to get rid of the Eternals, I'm not sure why, because I'm almost positive they don't have the artifacts either…but they're using us as a ransom. Kind of 'you die or they do'."

"That's what they told my brother, and your mother, and Bradley's Eternal," Joy muttered. Apparently she wasn't asleep.

For a while, nobody spoke. Then Bradley restarted his doubts.

"You're either really creative and really good at lying, or you're really, really insane," he said.

"Or I'm really, really getting fed up with your disbelief. This is real. It's happening. And chances are, it's about to get really dangerous."

Lena shoved her bobby pin really hard into the duct tape with the last word.

The tape moved.

"Yes! Yes! I got it!" Lena cried, wiggling the bobby pin around in the crack. The tape was dislodging quickly after the initial poke.

"Is that actually gonna help?" Bradley asked.

The tape fell off, and a thin line of light shone through, slightly illuminating Bradley's reddish-brown hair and gray hoodie sweatshirt.

"It's not just gonna help," Lena said. She pushed on the crack with her fingertips, and it lengthened. She pushed on it with her shoulder, and in about two seconds the crack had increased from its original three-inch-length to about three feet long, up and down.

"You guys, help me out!" Lena called.

Bradley jumped up almost immediately and pressed all of his weight against the rapidly weakening door. Joy joined them more hesitantly, but her tiny strength was the thing to top off the crack, which had reached the top and bottom of the door and was now widening.

"Almost…got it…" Lena grunted.

The door creaked and moaned.

"What's going on in there?" shouted a voice. It was the same man who had put the knife through the door in the first place. Lena couldn't help laughing at the irony.

A loud _SNAP! _sounded as the wood broke in half, swinging off its hinges. Lena, Joy, and Bradley tumbled out of the hole. The other half of the door stood firm, bolted in place.

Lena stood up. The guard stood before them, wielding a fierce-looking spear with four points. Even crouched in a defensive position, the man stood at least thirteen inches taller than five-foot-two Lena. His hair was dark brown and clipped short. He looked like he was in his thirties.

"What just happened?" Bradley asked, breathlessly and rubbing his head.

Two other people rushed in—a young woman with blonde hair in a messy ponytail and an abnormally short man with a bald head and a bushy black beard. The woman held a silver sword with a coppery sheen, and the man brandished a steel bow and had a quarrel of white arrows on his back.

Lena looked at the thin metal device she now held between her thumb and forefinger.

"This bobby pin has just either saved our lives," she said, "or doomed us."


	6. Out and In

"This is your fault," the woman said to the taller man.

Bradley and Joy stood up. Lena grinned.

"It is not!" the man exclaimed immaturely.

Lena laughed. "Yes, it is! If you didn't—"

All three weapons were suddenly aimed at Lena's head.

The woman licked her expertly painted lips. "Three children. Three young, energetic children. What a feast."

Bradley paled. "Excuse me? You're not gonna—"

The short man snickered, and the woman laughed. "Oh, not quite, my dear. You'll live—just not as you are now. Perhaps a bit more, well, _elderly." _

The pieces clicked together in Lena's mind. "You're a lectoblix, aren't you? You're going to drain our youth."

"Ah, an educated one," the taller man said mockingly.

"Everyone knows what lectoblixes do," the short man scoffed.

"Except me, apparently," Bradley pointed out.

"Shut up," the lectoblix ordered. "We should have taken the toddlers."

"If you had kidnapped Jane and Ella, you'd be dead by now," Bradley growled.

The woman sheathed her peculiar sword and grabbed Bradley's shoulder. Even though Lena hardly knew the boy, instinct wanted her to pry the lectoblix's perfectly manicured fingers off of him. "How old are you? Sixteen?"

"Fourteen."

"All the better."

Joy stepped up, so she was standing in between Lena and Bradley. "I know your voice. Rinilia Barker. Your sister was one of my brother's allies decades ago."

Rinilia sneered. "My sister was a cowardly fool. She was only good for killing the last Eternals—and then getting herself blown up by a stupid unicorn."

"A unicorn blew her up?" Poor Bradley was looking more and more confused every time anyone spoke.

"It was good riddance," Rinilia said.

"If you hated her so much, why are you working so hard to destroy her killers?"

"Torina's death has nothing to do with this! I am going to kill the Eternals for my own reasons, and you should just shut up and play your part!"

While Rinilia was talking, Lena and Bradley tried to inch their way out of their captors' sight. Lena ended up with the taller man's trident-like weapon under her chin and the short man nocked an arrow in Bradley's direction.

"Oh, don't bother trying to escape," Rinilia said nonchalantly. "Tollin's arrows and Jenlauer's tetralanse are tipped with a special mixture to numb the muscles and the nerves. If it gets into you, you'll be awake and aware of everything around you with no way of—"

The lectoblix was interrupted by the sound of heavy wings flapping above them. Everyone looked up instinctively. Bradley tensed, but the sound made Lena take a relaxed posture.

"I bet that's the rescue team," Lena announced, lifting her chin higher to look confident.

A loud thump on the roof made Rinilia draw her sword and Bradley wince. The short man directed his bow at the ceiling and the other man pulled his spear away from Lena. The sound of something scratching at the roof rang through the small hallway.

A large silver claw ripped through the ceiling. Everyone drew back from it except Lena, who had a hopeful assurance of who had come to save them.

"Sorry about the roof," said the small dragon poking his head through the hole. "Your front door was locked. And heavily guarded."

"What the…" the taller man started.

"Raxtus!" Lena exclaimed excitedly.

The dragon widened his rip big enough to drop through. "Hey, Lena. I figured that might be you. Did you know that a dragon brother's aura is extremely strong?"

"Oh, crap," Bradley muttered. He looked close to fainting.

Lena looked back at Bradley. "You haven't by chance had any abnormal milk today, have you? Or walrus butter?"

"What?"

"He probably doesn't need it," Raxtus assumed. "Dragon brothers can see us normally."

"Dragon brother?" Lena asked incredulously. "I thought there weren't any left!"

"Me too," Raxtus admitted. "But your friend here just proved me wrong."

Joy pointed towards where their kidnappers had stood. "The blixes and the dwarf have fled. You may not be as fierce as other dragons, but you have intimidated our captors."

"Good for me."

Lena hugged Raxtus around his scaly silver neck. "How did you find us?"

"Like I said, the aura of a dragon brother is extremely strong," Raxtus said. "Him and you together—perfect combination for me. Couldn't resist the pull."

"This isn't possible!" Bradley cried, burying his hands in his hair. "Dragons aren't real! This isn't happening!"

"What's his deal?" Raxtus asked.

"I'm not exactly sure," Lena said. "Do you know where we are? They blindfolded me whenever I wasn't shoved in a small dark place. And Bradley too. And Joy can't see anyway."

"Aha. Well, actually, I didn't really pay attention to where I was going. Normally I do, but I was just following your pull."

Lena's face fell. Bradley groaned in frustration.

"I felt how far they took me," Joy said. "I heard them speaking of our location. I cannot say exactly where we are, but I may be able to lead us away to safety. Can the dragon carry us?"

"You kidding? You guys are tiny. No offense. But I could carry something three times bigger than all of you combined for hours. You'll be a piece of cake."

Lena grinned. A dragon brother, a shadow charmer, a fairy dragon, and a girl with a bunch of fairy powers—who needs a rescue team?

Though the bed in the guest room at Fablehaven was extremely comfortable, Kendra couldn't sleep. She had a feeling she wouldn't be able to sleep for a long time.

Kendra looked at the digital clock on the bedside table. It was 2:37 AM, and she had not slept at all. She sat up on the bed. The rain still pattered on the windowpane, joined every now and then by low thunder and a flash of lightning. The rhythm of the drops tapping on the thick glass was almost in time with Bracken's slow, tired breathing as he slept. Kendra stood up and brushed aside the thin beige curtain, looking up at the gray-black sky. She was grateful for the cloud that hid the stars—seeing those tiny dots of white light would make her think of the eerie phone call she had received, and that would make her think of the danger Lena was in, and that would make her think of the inexorable sacrifice that she was going to make.

"Where are you?" she whispered to the rain. "How will I get to you?"

_On the night of October 21__st__, five people will perish in crimson flames, _the voice had foretold.

Kendra walked over to the door, careful to avoid the creaking floorboards. The door made no sound as she slowly opened it, and neither did any of the other doors she traversed through to reach the kitchen, where she had left her jacket. Her phone remained in the front pocket where she had put it earlier. Scrolling through her recent calls, she found the number of whoever had called her to deliver the frightening message and dialed it.

"Who is this?" answered a woman's voice—the same one who had called before. It was vaguely familiar, but Kendra did not realize it until later.

"Kendra Sorenson. I received your message, and I'm calling to say I've made my decision."

"And what is your decision?"

Kendra took a deep breath and sighed. "I want to save my daughter."

On the other end of the line, Rinilia smiled cruelly. "Excellent choice, my dear. When you arrive, Lena will be free to go home. However, I'm afraid the circumstances will not be so pleasant for you."

"I understand the circumstances. Where should I go?"

"You will find us in Monmouth, Illinois, in a small neighborhood, at 753 East 3rd Avenue. You'll recognize it by the green shutters."

Kendra memorized the location. A house in a small neighborhood did not seem like the ideal place to hold a quintuple execution. Then again, Kendra would not have cared if it was an outhouse in the mountains or a huge resort in Fiji—the place would always be a horrible area to her.

"All right. I'll be there."

"We can't wait to see you."

Kendra hung up. The dread pressing on her felt as if gravity had increased by ten times as she put the phone back in her pocket and slipped on her shoes. The sooner her daughter was free, the better.

"Where are you going?"

Kendra turned around to see Bracken standing behind her, his silvery hair unkempt and his countenance a mixture of foreboding curiosity and melancholy certainty.

"Monmouth, Illinois," Kendra said. "I'm going to make sure Lena gets home safely."

"Not alone," Bracken said. "I'm coming with you."

Tears began to sting in Kendra's eyes. "I don't want to…I don't want you to be there. I don't want you to see…"

"What? No. I can't let you give yourself up. I'm not going to lose you both."

A lump formed in her throat, making it hard for her to speak. "If I don't go, they'll come after me anyway. At least this way I might have a chance to keep her safe. Maybe you can come…come try to help."

Bracken took Kendra's hands in his. She looked up at him, a single trail of water running down her cheek. A sob escaped her lips. "If all else fails, at least you'll know…at least you'll know where to find me."

Kendra's words dissolved into weeping as she leaned against Bracken's chest. He wrapped his arms around her.

"At least wait until the storm passes," Bracken whispered.

Kendra closed her eyes, trying in vain to hold off the flow of tears, and nodded.


	7. Officer Kent

Sirens wailed. Police cars and animal control vehicles crowded the usually quiet street. A middle-aged, female police officer with frizzy brown hair and a dark blue uniform jabbered something into her walkie-talkie as she stepped toward Lena, Joy, Bradley and Raxtus.

"Careful with that!" yelled the policewoman. "Step away from the lizard! It's dangerous

"That's a komodo dragon," corrected an animal control worker as he grabbed a tranquilizer gun from the back of a truck.

"I don't care if it's the Queen of England, just get it away from those kids and get it under control!"

Lena looked at Raxtus. "Komodo dragon, huh? Well, at least they're close."

Bradley buried his face in his hands. "This is _not _happening!"

Two tranquilizer darts bounced off of Raxtus's steely scales, drawing confused exclamations from several people.

"What is on the police cars?" Joy inquired.

"What do you mean?" Lena asked.

"The writing on the side of the police cars."

"Oh. Monmouth Illinois Police Department."

"That's convenient," Raxtus said. "Though I'm still not sure exactly how to get you home from here."

Bradley groaned. "Stuck a bajillion miles from home with something that doesn't exist and could eat me any moment and a blind girl who acts like some evil oracle."

"Hey, what about me?" Lena joked.

"Oh yeah, and an obnoxiously confident know-it-all."

Lena made a face. "Well, if you're gonna be like that, you coulda just left me out."

"Hey!" the policewoman shouted. "Get away from the dragon!"

"Hold on tight," Raxtus said, wrapping one claw around Lena's waist. He grabbed Joy and an unrelenting Bradley and began to flap his wings. Three more tranquilizer darts fell harmlessly off of Raxtus's scales.

"Thank you for flying with Dragon Airlines. In the unlikely event that we are shot out of the sky, scream and hope that I'll catch you before you plummet to your doom. And don't freak out when I turn invisible, because it'll look like you're flying on your own. Thank you."

Bradley had the freaking-out part already mastered. Raxtus leapt into the air and soared away from the baffled animal control workers, terrified civilians, and considerably irritated policewoman. By the time they were above the rooftops, Bradley was screaming various interjections followed by the names of certain members of the Greek pantheon. Lena grinned at the shocked people below her as they rose higher and higher, until the clouds enveloped them.

XIXIXIXIXI

If a komodo dragon randomly showed up in a small town, tore off the roof of a house, seemed immune to the strongest tranquilizer darts, and ran off with three strangely calm children, a normal police officer would want a few days off of work to recover from hallucinations.

Fortunately, Theresa Kent was not a normal police officer.

Theresa pointed at a college-age girl in an animal control uniform. Her black hair was in a long ponytail and she was holding her tranquilizer gun wrong. Theresa guessed she was new, or a volunteer.

"Hey!" she yelled at the girl, who snapped to attention and nearly dropped her weapon. "Stay here and ask around! See if anyone saw anything weird!"

The girl looked confused. Theresa realized how stupid her request sounded. A giant lizard had appeared out of nowhere and ran off with three kids who were completely unperturbed at the situation. Everyone had seen something weird.

But there was no time to clear it up. She had to distract the other people—the people who didn't know what was going on. She had to follow the dragon.

Theresa slid into the police car and turned the keys in the ignition, not bothering to turn on the siren. She picked up her two-way radio at the same time.

"Officer Price? We've had some animal control issues over here. Of the abnormal variety."

"Translation?"

"A dragon. Way smaller than normal. Had a weird glow. Showed up out of nowhere and carried off three kids, two girls and a boy." Theresa began driving the direction that the dragon had flown off.

"How'd the kids react?"

"The two girls seemed completely calm, the older one was excited. The boy was freaking out."

"Were they normal?"

"Not remotely. All three of them had some extremely powerful auras. The older girl was like a lighthouse, the younger one exactly the opposite. Weirdest bunch I've seen."

"Weirder than a satyr on a dullion chasing a centaur with roller skates through Manhattan?"

Theresa remembered the scene. That _was _particularly strange. "That's not important. I'm following them right now. Try to find out what you can about 753 East 3rd Avenue. That's where it ripped open the roof and the kids came out."

"I'll check it out."

Theresa put down the transmitter and looked up at the sky, which was slowly becoming overcast. If not for the extremely luminous girl it was carrying, finding a small, fast-flying dragon in this weather would have been nigh impossible. Theresa pushed harder on the gas pedal, trying to keep up with the interesting group. The sharp brilliance of the girl cut through the clouds, making them easy to see. Theresa's speedometer inched further and further to the right as she continued to accelerate. She would not lose the trail.

XIXIXIXIXIXI

Raxtus lowered down to the empty cornfield, releasing his grip on Lena, Joy and Bradley. Lena and Joy easily dropped on their feet, but Bradley tumbled out of Raxtus's claw, falling facedown with a thud on the grassy ground. Bradley moaned.

"Where are we?" Lena asked, putting her hand over her eyes like a visor and scanning the sea of grain.

"Only about eight or nine miles outside the city limits," Raxtus said.

"There is a car approaching," Joy said.

Almost as soon as she said it, a police car pulled up over the hill. It stopped, and the policewoman who had yelled at them earlier stepped out. Raxtus turned invisible.

"Don't bother, dragon," hollered the policewoman as she walked over to them. "Now what in the name of George Washington is going on here?"

Raxtus reappeared. "Wait, who are you?"

"Does it really matter?" The policewoman turned to Lena and squinted. She opened the door of her car and pulled out two pairs of dark sunglasses. She put them on, one overtop of the other. Lena looked up at the cloudy sky.

"It's not the sun, it's you," the policewoman explained. "What are you, some kind of radioactive djinn? Take someone who's been living in a dark cave their whole life and have 'em stand around you for an hour, they'd be vitamin-D excessive in no time."

Lena looked at her arms.

"Now does anyone want to tell me what happened?" the policewoman asked again. "We've got a completely abnormal dragon coming in, ripping the roof off of a house, and flying off with three extremely powerful kids. How did this come around?"

"Wait, so you know about…magic and stuff?"

The policewoman put her hands on her hips. "Sweetheart, I've been dealing with 'magic and stuff' since before your grandparents were born."

"Actually, that's kind of impossible."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, depends on which grandparents you're talking about. On my mom's side, you're probably right, but my grandparents on my dad's side are the Fairy King and Queen."

"It's true," Raxtus added. "I've met them."

Bradley groaned. He had not gotten up from the ground.

"Well, that would explain the shininess. What about her?" She gestured at Joy.

"Shadow charmer. And Bradley's a dragon brother."

"Neither of those are supposed to be around anymore."

"Yeah, but I know two other shadow charmers, so…."

"You realize how impossibly powerful you three are?"

"Four," Raxtus said.

Lena smiled. "Absolutely."

"I suppose I should be glad you haven't decided to take over the world."

"Now that you bring it up, it sounds tempting."

"What's your name?"

"Lena. And these are Joy, Raxtus, and Bradley's on the ground."

Bradley grunted.

"I'm Officer Kent. So how'd this happen? For the third time?"

"They got kidnapped," Raxtus explained. "By the people in that house that I kinda destroyed. There was a lectoblix, and a dwarf, and another guy who I think was a blix too."

"A narcoblix," Joy specified. "The lectoblix was named Rinilia Barker. The dwarf and the narcoblix were Tollin and Jenlauer, but I do not know which was which."

Officer Kent's face darkened. "I think I do. Where are you headed? Now that you've escaped?"

Lena shrugged. Bradley mumbled something—possibly his address—but it was hard to tell what he was saying with his face pressed into the grass.

"Um, honestly, we don't know," Lena said.

Officer Kent checked her watch. "It's too late to go anywhere now. Lena, honey, could you stand a little closer to Joy?"

Lena shifted so she and Joy were shoulder to shoulder.

"Much better." Officer Kent took off her sunglasses.

"What?" Lena looked at Joy.

"Your light and her darkness cancel each other out. Now you look basically normal. Now, if you can get your friend here off the ground, we may be able to make it to my place before dark. Hop in the car."


	8. Closer

Kendra awoke to the smell of butterscotch, mint, raspberry, chocolate, and countless other things that shouldn't have gone together but did. She rolled over and saw that Bracken had already gotten up. Bright sunlight shone through the thin curtains as Kendra stretched and went downstairs.

"What's that smell?" Kendra asked as she walked into the kitchen.

Seth smiled slyly. "Jumble pie. Made it myself. Well, not really. Have some."

Bracken was already sitting at the table, halfway done with his slice of pie. There was another plate waiting for Kendra. She sat and tried a bite. It was divine.

"This is great," Kendra said. "There is no way you made this."

Seth laughed. "I'll try not to take that as an insult. Naw, it was the brownies. If you look closely, you'll see that the chair over there is a little bit nicer than the other three."

"When did it break?"

"This morning. About five AM."

"What happened?"

"I chopped it up. Needed some way to get the brownies out here."

"You realize you could have just called them?"

Seth shrugged. "Eh. Chopping up chairs relieves stress."

Kendra grinned and ruffled her younger brother's hair. Bracken finished his piece of pie and came up to the counter for another slice as Kendra began her own. By the time the jumble pie was gone, everyone was full and content.

Until Kendra's phone rang.

"Hello?" she greeted, smiling. Bracken and Seth were still at the table, chatting.

"Have a nice sleep?" asked the woman on the other end of the line. Kendra's smile immediately transformed into an expression of hurt, fear, and subtle anger.

"Who are you?" Kendra demanded.

"If you must know, I'm Rinilia Barker. I just called to remind you of your decision last night. Are you coming or not? It's only one day away, and we are becoming impatient."

Kendra swallowed. "I'm on my way."

"Good girl. Oh, and come alone. My colleagues and I will not hesitate to eliminate any uninvited guests. And, my dear, try to look nice. No one wants to see you burning to death in your pajamas. I believe your blue evening gown shall do well."

Kendra gritted her teeth. "Of course. I'll be there right away."

Kendra hung up the phone and grabbed her car keys.

XIXIXIX

Lena took another bite of the syrup-drenched waffle. Joy sat close beside her, tentatively sipping her orange juice. Bradley had already finished his waffles and was helping himself to another.

Officer Kent walked in and poured herself some coffee. "Don't make yourself sick," she warned as Bradley cut into his fourth waffle.

"Sorry," he apologized. "These are really good."

Officer Kent rolled her eyes. "They're just toaster waffles."

Joy pushed away her glass of orange juice. "I'm full."

Lena stared at the glass, which was still mostly full. "But you didn't eat anything."

Joy shook her head. "Our escape has done nothing. The Eternals will still come to try to save us. They will still die."

"Lighten up," Lena said, giving Joy a playful nudge. "Raxtus is a fast flyer. He'll get us home in time. Don't worry. It's not until tomorrow."

Joy sighed and pushed away from the table. Cautiously feeling her way around, she went back to the room where she and Lena had spent the night. Officer Kent turned around and drank her coffee, resting her elbows on the counter.

"By the way, where is Raxtus?" asked Bradley. He had gotten over the shock of the dragon really existing and was now quickly bonding with him.

"He's probably coming back from—"

Lena was cut off by a huge _SLAM! _shaking the house. Joy's untouched orange juice spilled over the table as Lena toppled onto Bradley, sending both of them to the floor. Officer Kent grabbed the counter for support.

"What was that?" Lena cried. She tried getting up, but another crash knocked her down again as soon as she was up on her knees. Bradley grunted as she fell back on top of him. Joy stumbled out of the bedroom, disoriented and confused.

Officer Kent grabbed something from the silverware drawer, and Lena thought she was going to assault whatever was slamming into the house with a fork. Then the fork lengthened until it was at least four feet long, and Lena realized that it was the same weapon that had been wielded by one of the guards—a tetralanse.

"Go get in the car!" Officer Kent yelled. "Bradley, you drive!"

Officer Kent tossed the keys for her sedan to Bradley, who caught them and looked at them blankly. "Why can't we just fly with Raxtus?"

An enormous dragon-like creature with a rooster's head crashed through the wall. It was fighting with Raxtus, who was only about two-thirds the size of his adversary. Morning sunlight shone through the gigantic rip the rooster-headed beast had created.

"Run!" Officer Kent yelled as she fought off some of the smaller creatures surging through the hole with her tetralanse. Lena grabbed Joy's hand and ran out the back door, Bradley right behind them.

Bradley slammed the door behind them. He looked at Officer Kent's car, then at Lena. "Do you know how to drive?"

Lena shrugged and shook her head. Bradley bit his lip.

And then, to everyone's surprise, Joy promptly grabbed the keys and ran to the car. "Get in!"

"Are you crazy?" Lena asked as Joy climbed into the driver's seat. "You're blind! You'll— "

A bright white smile cracked across Joy's dark brown face, a stunning sight. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't drive a car!"

"Actually, it kind of—"

Bradley was cut off by a gargantuan rhinoceros smashing through the wall. Joy turned the keys in the ignition, giving Lena and Bradley just barely enough time to jump in the car and buckle up before she shifted gears, stepped on the gas, and sped off towards the opposite horizon.


	9. Kicking and Screaming

_Cockatrice, goblins, a karkadann—ugh, this is not what I signed up for._

As soon as she saw the other beasts coming through the rip caused by the cockatrice, Theresa Kent knew she was hopelessly outnumbered. The dragon fought well and almost defeated the cockatrice, but soon the goblins had entrapped him with a magical net. At least she managed to buy some time for the kids to escape.

Theresa crossed her arms across her chest, listening to Raxtus's futile attempts to pound his way out of the concrete cell he had been locked in.

A knock sounded on the heavy wooden door of Theresa's cell. "Ms. Kent?"

Theresa scowled. "What do you want?"

"Our other, ah, _guests _have been granted more pleasurable lodgings," answered a female voice. "The opportunity to stay in a more comfortable area is yours, as long as you resign from any escape attempts and accept what will happen tomorrow night."

"I think you know my answer to that."

There was a pause, a sigh, and then the woman outside said, "Very well, Ms. Kent. There is a bell by the door for you to ring if you change your mind, or if you need anything."

The woman walked away, leaving Theresa alone with Raxtus's determined pounding—and a plan formulating in her head.

Theresa let a while pass, and rang the bell by the door.

The door opened a crack, allowing a bright blue eye to peer through. "Have you changed your mind?"

"Yeah, I could use a new room."

The door opened wider, revealing a pretty woman in her twenties, with blonde hair in a messy ponytail. "Excellent. And are you going to try to escape?"

Theresa shook her head. The woman extended her hand for Theresa to shake on the deal, which Theresa accepted.

Quick as a mousetrap, Theresa pulled the woman closer and kneed her in the stomach. While the woman doubled over, Theresa snatched the sword from her belt and knocked her over the head with the hilt, knocking her unconscious.

"Sorry, sweetheart," Theresa said, stepping back from her defeated adversary. "You may have subdued the other guys, but this Eternal's gonna go down fighting."

XIXIXIX

It was hard enough for Lena to stay calm when her seatbelt wasn't working and Joy was careening down the street at a dangerous speed, narrowly avoiding the obstacles Bradley warned her of. But try staying calm when you're bouncing around a car driven by an eight-hundred-year-old blind girl and being chased by a giant furry rhinoceros.

Thankfully, the streets of Monmouth were very empty that morning.

"Slow down!" Lena cried.

"No!" Bradley yelled back. "The rhino thingy's almost on top of us! Go faster!"

"It's a karkadann!" Joy screamed, pressing harder on the gas pedal.

The karkadann roared, shaking its colossal head. Lena shouted something, but it was lost as the karadann caught up to the car, slammed its massive single horn under the rear bumper, and launched the car and its three screaming occupants flipping through the air.

"WE ARE GOING TO DIE!" Bradley shrieked.

Lena looked down and saw that they were rapidly descending toward a silver minivan, which was slowly moving down the street, as if checking addresses.

Lena screamed louder and abandoned her seatbelt, grabbing the underside of the seat and shielding herself with the seat as the car turned upside-down and slammed into the minivan.

Joy raised her arms to protect her face as the airbags deployed. Officer Kent's sedan was completely totaled, but other than a few scrapes, cuts, and bruises, its passengers were unharmed.

Lena opened the side door, which was now on the top, and carefully climbed out, helping Joy and Bradley out after her.

The minivan skidded to a stop by the curb, dented and with a shattered window. A brown-haired woman in a blue evening gown stepped out, disheveled and irritated but otherwise intact. Lena turned around to face the woman and uttered a choked cry.

"What the…" Kendra shouted angrily.

But all anger melted when she saw her daughter standing there, with several silver scrapes and scratches on her face and arms.

"Mom!" Lena cried, running to hug her mother.

Kendra caught her daughter in a fierce embrace. Lena wrapped her arms around Kendra's neck, lifting her feet off the ground. Kendra kissed her daughter's hair and face, tears of relief and joy welling up in her eyes.

Lena pulled away, dropping back to the ground. "What are you doing here?"

Kendra managed a half-smile. "It doesn't matter now. You're here, you're safe—"

"Mostly," Bradley chimed in.

Kendra looked behind Lena. "Who are your friends?"

Lena turned around. "Joy and Bradley. Shadow charmer, dragon brother."

"Hi, Mrs.…Lena's mom," Bradley said, giving a small wave.

Joy furrowed her eyebrows. "Why is it that you two are so bright? Lena said that all of your family is full of light. Except for your brother."

Kendra's smile widened. "It's kind of a long story. But yeah, we're all…we're on the much lighter end of the magic spectrum."

A roar suddenly cut through the otherwise quiet morning air, leading everyone to look up.

"What was that?" Kendra asked.

Lena scratched the back of her neck. "Um, yeah. Long story, but we were getting attacked and Joy was driving and my seatbelt didn't work and we were getting chased by this—"

The karkadann rounded the corner, snorted, and began charging towards them.

"Yeah. Giant furry rhino trying to kill us."

Kendra looked at the cars, which were completely trashed and in no way fit to drive.

"Cars aren't gonna work," she said. "I suggest we run."

Lena grabbed Joy's hand and promptly complied.


	10. Reunion

**Author's Note: Sorry about the wait, guys! I had a lot of stuff going on and a lot of writer's block, so it felt like this chapter took a long time to finish. And it's not even that long…anyway, it's here now, hope you enjoy!**

XIXIXIX

_The young woman happily greeted her friend, whom she hadn't seen since he had gone off to the mountains, to help her brother with the dragons there. Her excited smile vanished when she saw her friend's grim expression, and noticed the morose-looking teenage boy standing a few yards back._

"_What's wrong?" the young woman asked. "Where's Chuck?"_

_Her friend looked up at her, comparing his own grief to hers. "He's gone. Arlin and I found Gavin here up there, all alone in the ashes. The whole place was burned to the ground."_

_The young woman searched her friend's mournful eyes for comfort, a lump forming in her throat. "You mean he's…he's dead?"_

_Her friend's head dipped in a melancholy nod. Her vision blurred with tears._

"_But Gavin survived," her friend said, trying to sound more hopeful than he felt, pulling the boy up to stand next to him. "He withstood an attack from a very powerful dragon."_

"_It wasn't w-worth it," the boy stuttered sadly. "My dad's d-dead now and I c-c-couldn't do anything."_

_The young woman swallowed her own heartache for the loss for her brother and tried to sympathize with the boy who had lost his father._

"_Don't worry," she said. "You must be pretty tough to deal with that."_

_Gavin shook his head. "Maybe. But n-not enough."_

The memories were coming back to Layla in moments. The moment she met Devon. The moment she first encountered a dragon. The moment Chuck subdued a dragon that was attacking her. The moment she and Devon and Chuck became Knights of the Dawn. The moment she learned that Chuck was dead.

"It hasn't even been that long," she said to herself. How could she have forgotten so much so soon?

Suddenly, a large _CRASH! _snapped her out of her pondering. The door flew open and a woman with frizzy brown hair stepped in, apparently in her fifties, looking flustered and in a hurry.

"You a prisoner here?" she asked.

Layla blinked. "Um, I suppose. Who are you?"

"Your means of escape. You?"

"Layla Hutchinson."

"By any chance are you related to Bradley Hutchinson?"

Layla's face brightened. "You know Bradley? Is he here? Where is he?"

The woman ran back out the door, Layla on her heels. "Bradley should be fine for now. But you're not. You wanna see him again, you've gotta stick with me. Oh, and don't mind the dragon. He's on our side. Where're the other guys?"

Layla smiled and began to lead the way.

XIXIXIX

After risking a few priceless moments to grab her cell phone out of her smashed car, Kendra was running full speed down East 3rd Avenue, with Lena, Joy and Bradley running right after her.

Kendra quickly called Bracken, who was still at Fablehaven.

"Kendra? Where are you?"

"Monmouth, Illinois," Kendra said breathlessly. "Getting chased by a karkadann. How fast can you get here?"

"A karkadann?" Bracken asked incredulously. "Who _are _these people?"

"Some very well-connected psychos," Kendra yelled over the roar of the karkadann. She glanced back at the creature, which was almost right on top of them. Lena looked back too, followed by Bradley.

"We're not gonna outrun it!" Bradley yelled. "Duck!"

"What?" Lena screamed.

"Get in the middle of the street and duck!"

Lena decided that Bradley might have some idea what he was doing, squeezed her eyes shut and followed his instructions, pulling Joy along with her. Kendra followed suit, and the karkadann thundered right over them. Lena stood up.

"Wow," she panted. "That was really smart."

Joy nodded. "Good plan."

"In hindsight, that would have been the obvious thing to do," Lena said.

Bradley grinned as they watched the karkadann run forward a bit longer before slamming its feet down to try and stop—which failed, and the enormous beast crashed into a parked car.

Lena laughed triumphantly and was about to give Bradley a high-five when the karkadann stood back up, snorted, and charged back at them, completely unharmed but very angry.

"Bracken, we kind of need you here right now," Kendra said. "The karkadann is now thoroughly ticked off and I don't think ducking is going to work again."

"Off the street!" Joy shouted, pulling Lena onto the nearest lawn. Kendra and Bradley did the same.

"Why can't I think of any obvious solutions?" Lena lamented as the karkadann charged straight past them again.

"This won't work forever," Kendra pointed out. "It's gonna—"

The karkadann appeared in front of Lena. She flinched as it snorted in her face, blowing back her hair and splattering her T-shirt with mucus.

"Ew," Bradley muttered, recoiling a little.

"Ya think?" Lena retorted, standing completely still so not to startle or anger the creature that stood before her.

The karkadann sniffed, its beady pupils dilating.

"Hey! Rhino-butt!"

The karkadann turned and snorted at the man who had yelled. Lena looked around the karkadann's hindquarters to catch a glimpse of their rescuer.

"Uncle Seth!" she cried excitedly.

Seth gave her a knowing smile and a two-fingered salute. "How-de-do, ma'am."

The karkadann roared again. Seth put his hands on his hips. "Excuse me, but that is no way to talk in the presence of a lady. Much less three ladies. Now, if you're that intent on chasing someone for absolutely no reason—catch me if you can."

With that, Seth took off running. After several moments, the karkadann was able to turn and charge after him. Seth turned a corner, and the large creature stumbled and slid for a bit before managing to follow him. A second or two later, Lena, Kendra, Joy, and Bradley ran after the sound of confused, frustrated roaring and Seth's triumphant laughter.

"By the way, you didn't have to call," Seth said as the others gawked at the karkadann, which was now caught in an enormous net. "We left as soon as we noticed you were gone. We arrived, like, two minutes after you did."

"'We'?" Kendra asked

Bracken stepped out from behind the karkadann and pulled tight one of the knots. "Yeah, I'm here too."

"Dad!" Lena cried as she and Kendra both ran up to hug him. Bracken wrapped his arms around his wife and his daughter and squeezed.

"Aww, group hug!" Seth announced, pulling Joy and Bradley in as well. The karkadann made a doleful-sounding groan, as if disappointed it wasn't allowed to join in the multiple embrace.

"By the way, who're these guys?" Seth asked, breaking up the group hug.

"I'm Bradley," said Bradley, holding out his hand for Seth and Bracken to shake.

"And this is Joy," Lena said. "We were all kidnapped by the guys who sent the karkadann after us."

"A unicorn, Lena?" Joy asked skeptically. "You were not exaggerating when you said your family was 'as light as you can get'. And you must be Lena's uncle, the shadow charmer."

Seth smiled. "How'd you guess?"

"Joy's a shadow charmer, too," Lena said.

"You're one of the good guys, right?" Seth asked.

Joy's lips curled upward in a half-smile. "I suppose so."

"Awesome." Seth raised his palm for a high-five from Joy, but she did made no move to respond.

"Um, Joy's also blind," Lena said cautiously.

"All right, that's cool," Seth said, putting his hand down. "So, where to next?"

The answer was unanimous. "Home."


	11. Bradley's Cousin

"674, right?"

"674 East Henry Street," Bradley recited for the twelfth time since leaving Monmouth. They were now in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, after a relatively short drive in Seth's Toyota Camry. The red car had a seating capacity less than the number of passengers, so Joy, the smallest, had to squeeze in and share a seatbelt with Lena. Seth was driving, with Bracken in the passenger seat and Kendra in the back with Bradley, Joy, and Lena.

"This is it!" Bradley exclaimed, grabbing the back of Seth's seat in excitement. "The yellow one with the blue door!"

Lena looked out the window at the house Bradley was talking about.

"You call that blue?" she asked. The door was closer to a dark gray, but Lena supposed there could be some blue in it if she looked hard enough.

Seth pulled into the driveway. Bradley hurriedly unbuckled and started crawling across Joy and Lena to get to the door.

"Hold on a second," Lena said irritably, unbuckling herself and Joy and opening the door. As soon as the way was clear, Bradley jumped out of the car and ran to the door.

"Mom! Dad! Jane, Ella, I'm back!" Bradley shouted, flinging open the door and leaping through it.

Lena, Joy, Bracken, Seth, and Kendra followed Bradley into the house to the sound of three high-pitched voices screaming "BRADLEEEEEYYYYY!" at the same time. When they entered, they saw Bradley being accosted by three girls hugging him as hard as they could—two toddlers who Lena assumed were Bradley's sisters, Jane and Ella, and another vaguely familiar girl about Lena's age.

"Where were you?" asked the older girl, pulling away. "Your mom and dad left yesterday and they said they were going to look for you. You're probably wondering why I'm here, aren't you? Well, my mom said that we had to come over here to take care of your parents while you were gone, but now your parents are gone too, and my parents went to go look for _them, _so now I'm stuck here babysitting Jane and Ella. Not that there's anything wrong with babysitting Jane and Ella, I mean, they're such cute little angels! But since your parents are looking for you and my parents are looking for them so now since we came over to take care of your family it's just ended up being me taking care of Jane and Ella—"

Lena suddenly remembered why she recognized this girl. "Alexis?"

Alexis Blaskenjoom looked away from Bradley at Lena. After a second, her confused expression broke into a wide grin. "Hi, Lena! How did you get here? Isn't this such a great coincidence? Do you know Bradley? Is that why you're here? It's so good to see you! I heard that you went missing too!" She paused to gasp. "Omigosh! Did you get kidnapped by the same people? That would totally make sense! But I don't know why. But I'm right, right? Because you both went missing at the same time about and now you're both back at the same time and now you know each other! Omigosh am I right?"

Lena blinked. "Um, yeah. That's pretty much exactly what happened. Wow."

Alexis smiled. "That's such a weird coincidence! Oh, Bradley's my cousin by the way. In case you were wondering why I'm way over here at his house when I'm really supposed to be at my house—oh, hey, you must be Lena's parents! I'm Alexis, Bradley's cousin. Well, I guess you already heard me telling Lena that I'm Bradley's cousin, but anyway…"

Alexis trailed off, completely silent for the first time that Lena had seen.

"We missed you!" exclaimed one of the little girls. They were both still clinging to Bradley's legs.

"I missed you, too," Bradley said, bending down to pick up the sister who had spoken.

"Oh, by the way, your mom and dad were gonna take this to give to you when they found you, but they accidentally left it here," Alexis said, reaching over the counter next to her to grab a plain white envelope with Bradley's name scrawled on the top. "I guess it's a good thing that they left it here, because if they took it with them you wouldn't get it. Anyway, here you go!"

She handed Bradley the envelope and turned to Kendra, Bracken, and Seth.

"Thanks so much for finding Bradley!" she gushed. "And bringing him back. Hey, where did he disappear to? And Lena too? Did you get the guys arrested already? Oh, I bet it's on TV! Hold on a second!"

Alexis zipped out of the room and Lena heard the television turning on. "Oh, hey! Jane, Ella, come watch Super Why! It's on right now!"

The twins squealed and raced out to watch their show. Bradley watched them run.

"Well, they're not gonna be coming back anytime soon," Bradley said. "I guess you guys can go now. Thanks for everything."

Bradley turned to Lena. "Bye, Lena."

Lena smiled and hugged him. Bradley seemed surprised by the sudden display of affection, but then tentatively hugged back. When they pulled apart, Bradley bid his farewells to Joy, Seth, Bracken and Kendra, and thanked them one more time before they headed out.

"So, looks like you've got a bit of a thing for Bradley, huh?" Kendra asked teasingly once they were in the car.

Lena turned pink. "No! Mo-om!"

"You should've asked for his phone number."

"Dad!"

"Oh, what an opportunity this is."

"Shut up, Uncle Seth."

All the adults laughed. Lena crossed her arms, annoyed, and Joy sat silently in the middle of the backseat as Seth turned the keys in the ignition and started backing out of the driveway.

"So, Joy?" Seth asked. "Where do you live? Close enough to drive from here?"

"I don't remember. Probably not."

"Joy got her memories taken away," Lena explained.

Seth started driving down the street. "How would you like to become an honorary member of the Sorenson family? Just until we find your real home. You could stay at Fablehaven with me. Or if you'd rather stay with Lena, that'd be cool too."

"Thank you for your offer, but I would like to find my brother as soon as possible."

"Okay, who's—"

"HEEEEYYYYY!"

Everybody looked back and saw Bradley trying to run after the car with something white flapping in his hand. Seth pulled over to the side of the road and stopped the car.

"It's my parents," Bradley panted at the window. "The note…they left me…they went to…"

Lena hopped out of the car. "What does the note say?"

Bradley handed her the note. "It's to apologize for leaving me alone…and to say goodbye."


	12. One Night Left

**Author's Note: Okay, I admit it, I have been SLACKING. I am so bad! Blame the gnomes in my brain—they were sitting on the section of my cerebellum where my ideas for this chapter were being held. But the gnomes have risen, the chapter has been written, and MoonShadowChronicles's ninjas have been detained!**

"You—complete—_idiot!"_

Jenlauer's mediocre attempts to shield himself did little to slow the beating. "Ow! Quit hitting me!"

Rinilia had been smacking both her comrades on the head with her empty leather scabbard continually for the past four minutes, pausing every few seconds to excoriate their failure to keep the prisoners. "I can't _believe_ you let _all _of them escape! We had one night left to hold them! _One night! _Couldn't you wait to be total failures until _after _the meteor shower? Of all the brainless, incompetent morons—"

"Don't forget, you were the first one to get taken out," Tollin said bitterly, cradling the cheek where Rinilia's scabbard had left a bruise.

Rinilia bruised the other cheek. "Shut up, dwarf!"

"We only had three of them," Jenlauer said. "The other two never came."

"That's because you let the children escape!" Rinilia shouted. "You and your stupid knife and your stupid threats and your stupid—"

"She was being annoying! And besides, it was the dragon's fault!"

Rinilia screamed in frustration and threw her scabbard at Jenlauer's face. "It wasn't even a real dragon! Not a proper one, anyway! And you—"

There was a sharp knock at the door. Rinilia straightened and brushed a wayward strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

"Give me your spear," she whispered fiercely to Jenlauer.

"Why? What for?"

Rinilia reached down, yanked Jenlauer's tetralanse out of his hands, and walked over to the door. There was the sound of the door opening, a prompt _thunk, _and the noise of a body falling to the ground. Jenlauer and Tollin scrambled over to inspect the damage.

Rinilia turned and started walking back as Tollin and Jenlauer tried to identify the man that Rinilia had just knocked unconscious with Jenlauer's weapon. The man had straight brown hair and a police officer's uniform.

"We're in enough trouble without you knocking out the cops just for showing up when you're in a bad mood," Tollin called to Rinilia.

"Y'know, this isn't just some random cop," Jenlauer pointed out, bending down to look closer at the unconscious officer. "It's Lucas Price."

"Lucas Price, who I should know because…"

Jenlauer rolled his eyes. "You know."

"Oh, yeah." The dwarf gave a little chuckle. "How backwards is that? Your girlfriend knocks him out—"

"Did you just refer to Rinilia Barker as my girlfriend? Are you _kidding _me?"

"Whatever. But he wakes up after getting knocked out and sees you about to capture him or kill him or something—I'm just saying it's a little ironic. You know—" Tollin dropped his voice in an imitation of Darth Vader—"'Luke, you are my father.'"

Jenlauer rolled his eyes again, despite the uneasy feeling in his gut. "So, what should we do with him?" he called to Rinilia.

Rinilia stalked back into the doorway. "Must you rely on me for everything?"

Jenlauer and Tollin both shrugged.

"Fine. It doesn't matter. Just kill him."

"But he's my—"

It was Rinilia's turn to roll her eyes. "Yes, yes, I know. Fine, then. Tollin, you kill him."

_Do I work with cowardly children as well as incompetent fools? _Rinilia thought to herself as she sulked away.

XIXIXIX

"Are you sure this is safe?" Layla yelled again.

"Seriously," Raxtus called back. "I'm not gonna eat you!"

Layla didn't feel reassured.

"Relax," Theresa said, shouting in order to be heard over the wind. "He wouldn't hurt us any more than you would hurt a puppy."

"And how are you sure of this?"

"Hatched by fairies, my friend," Raxtus said, ascending over a cloud. "Yeah, I know, it's pretty pathetic. But I can really fight when it comes to it—you should have seen me take out that dwarf dude and the goblins."

"She _did _see you take out the dwarf dude and the goblins," Theresa said.

"Oh, yeah."

"It's okay," Devon reassured Layla, reaching out to take her hand. Layla took hold and squeezed, grateful to have something familiar and comforting among the crazy situation.

"Buckle your seatbelts, ladies and gentlemen," Raxtus announced, beginning to descend. "We're heading in for a landing."

XIXIXIX

"Flight number 44 to Bingöl is now departing. Bingöl için uçuş numarası 44 şimdi giden edilir. Flight number 45 to Antalya is delayed..."

The Sphinx peered around to see the front of line—very far ahead. He sighed. Air travel seemed to become more and more complicated every time he used it—which was thankfully rare. But his traditional methods were too slow, too inappropriate for the task at hand. He needed to find Aisha as immediately as possible. He couldn't risk any legal complications—well, the smallest amount possible.

The line moved three inches further. The Sphinx was a patient man, but airports tended to make him edgy. He decided the wait was a good thing—it gave him plenty of time to think, and he had a lot on his mind.

Aisha was alive. That was good and bad. She was being held captive, but probably not anymore—her power had been horrifically strong even when he last saw her, and she could only have gotten stronger over the centuries. She would be searching for him.

The little girl in front of him dropped her cup of orange juice, which spilled over the drab tile floor. The Sphinx stepped back to avoid getting juice on his shoes as the child's mother apologized in Turkish and began to clean up the mess. The little girl stuck her thumb in her mouth and watched innocently as her mother took some napkins out of her purse to mop up the juice.

_One night left,_ the Sphinx thought, ignoring the fact that the little girl with the spilled orange juice was now splashing around in the sticky liquid. _I have to find her. I have to stop her. One night left._


	13. Whispers in the Dark

The next morning, the Hutchinson home was buzzing with noise and activity.

"So your grandma's, like, queen of all the good magic stuff?" Alexis asked Lena.

After Bradley's parents had arrived home in the claws of a dragon, talking excitedly about things that made absolutely no scientific sense, Lena felt that her classmate deserved an explanation.

"Well, there's not really good magic or bad magic," Lena clarified. "Just light and dark. But it's pretty close—you should just generally assume that creatures of light, like fairies and stuff, are on your side. Dark creatures like demons are usually against you. Well, demons are always against you, I guess. They're really bad."

"So that's why your dad doesn't have a last name, right?" Alexis said. "Cus he's a fairy or something."

"Actually, he's a unicorn."

"But he's a dude. And his mom is the Fairy Queen."

"He's in his human state. Trapped in it, actually. And the Fairy Queen's a unicorn, too."

"The Fairy Queen's a unicorn? Then why isn't she the Unicorn Queen?"

"I wish I knew."

"If your dad's a unicorn, does that make you part horse? That's kinda creepy."

Lena frowned. "I've never actually thought about it that way. Dad?"

Bracken looked up from his piece of toast. "What?"

"Does you being a unicorn make me part horse?"

Bracken looked up, thinking. "I think that discussion can wait a couple more years."

"Dad, I've already had 'The Talk'."

"No, that was just the human part of it."

"Okay, never mind. I don't even wanna know."

"And I thought my parents were weird," Bradley said, still waiting for his Pop-Tarts to finish toasting.

"Dude, how burned do you want it?" Lena asked incredulously.

"You should see him camping," Bradley's mom joked. "He puts his marshmallows right in the fire—he'd eat them flaming if I let him."

"He _did _eat them flaming once," his dad said. "Remember?"

"Oh, Dad, not that story again! Come on!"

"Isn't this great?" Seth grinned. "We're all one big, happy, embarrassing, dysfunctional family."

"Weirdest family I've seen," Officer Kent said bluntly. "And that's even without the dragon."

"Where is Raxtus, anyway?"

Joy was the only one not participating in any of the lighthearted conversations in the kitchen. The blind shadow charmer had retreated to the guest bedroom that the Hutchinsons had given her and Lena the night before, emerging only for a small bite of breakfast before returning to the small, blank room.

Lena set her spoon into her almost-empty cereal bowl and went to go check on her friend. The hallway was dark, but there were lights on in every room except for the one where Joy was sitting alone. Her door was shut, and faint whispers drifted from the cracks in the hinges and underneath the door.

Lena put an ear to the wood, trying to decode the garbled whispering.

"You must wait. When the stars fall, you will rise."

Lena furrowed her brow quizzically. The rasping voice didn't sound like Joy's.

"The shining princess listens. She hears. She wonders. She does not know."

"Joy? You okay in there?" Lena called, knocking.

Silence.

Lena turned the knob and reached inside, flipping the light switch. The bulb lit up, only to be extinguished a split second later with a hiss. Joy stood alone in the middle of the dark room; her back to the door, her long black hair draped over one shoulder. She was wearing some of Alexis's extra pajamas. They were green, dotted with little cartoon sheep, and they hung loosely on her small frame.

"Who were you talking to in here?" Lena asked.

Joy said nothing. The happy chattering in the kitchen was still loud, but distant and faint.

"What was that whispering?"

_She asks questions better left unanswered. She fears. Her light is dimming._

"Um, Joy, you're kind of freaking me out here…"

_Her light is less, but not enough. It must go out._

"Seriously, what's going on? You're really scaring me now."

_Her light must go out. The night approaches. The light must go out._

Lena took a step forward and reached out her arm.

_She reaches! The light! She must not touch—_

The whispering stopped abruptly as Lena laid her hand on Joy's shoulder. The light bulb flicked on.

"Are you okay?" Lena asked, gently turning Joy around.

Joy blinked her icy gray eyes. "No."

XIXIXIX

"I know it'll feel kinda psychiatrist-y, but he's a shadow charmer too and he knows what you're dealing with. Probably."

"Your uncle will be no help with this," Joy insisted. "I asked you to leave."

"But he can help," Lena replied. "If you're really not okay, you can—"

"Trust me, Lena. You will be better off if you stay away for a while."

"If you just talk to him—"

"Go away, Lena. I understand your concern. You are my friend, and that is why you need to get out of here."

Lena frowned. "Okay. But I'm coming back in five minutes, no more."

Lena stood up and walked out of the bedroom, rejoining the happiness and noise in the kitchen with the others. She closed the door behind her. As soon as Lena was gone, Joy extinguished the light bulb and sent the room into blackness.

_You cannot let this princess weaken you, _her mentor whispered in her mind.

"I am not the weak one," Joy replied angrily. "You have no power at all, not even life. You're dead, killed by a child twenty-four years ago."

_The child did not kill me!_ the demon cried. Joy gritted her teeth and resisted pushing out her mentor's voice. _He tossed a stolen blade, and robbed me of my physical form. I survived in you. _

"You crawled into me like a spider," Joy seethed, "a spider who had been crushed by a fly. A fly who now sits and laughs, happy and unaware, less than a hundred feet away from here. You were dead. I am your salvation."

_You are my slave! You are the weak, tiny mind in which I wait for victory! You are nothing!_

Tears of anger and anguish began streaming down Joy's dark face. "I am everything! Without me, you would be only a memory, only an image in the mind of an idiot! I am your master!"

_Then be rid of me! You know you have the power—use it! Make me pay for all the suffering I have caused, in you and everyone else I have touched! Do it!_

Joy fell onto one of the beds and pressed her face into the pillow. "I won't die for you! You leave, I perish, and you just go off and inhabit someone else! I will never die!"

_You are a fool, just like your brother. Too attached to life—that is your fatal flaw. You have always known the way he will die. It doesn't matter when, where, or how—but your brother's death will always be at your hands, just like the deaths of all the others. It will always be your fault._

Joy uttered a muffled scream into the pillow and broke into sobs. She knew the demon in her mind was right. She always was. However cruel, evil, or deceptive Nagi Luna could be, she was never wrong.


	14. Please Keep Talking

Rinilia Barker was in a really, _really _bad mood.

The cop was bad enough, but at least he just needed a solid whack to the head to subdue him. But now this guy? This guy was armed, strong, and skilled. He was clever, he was patient, he was quick. And he was also very angry. It was actually quite annoying.

"Why can't you just hold still for half a second!" Rinilia yelled, ducking a blow from the man's sword and slashing her own toward him. He met the swipe with his blade and pushed it back to Rinilia, who twisted her sword in an attempt to make him drop his. The man pulled his weapon away suddenly and knocked Rinilia's sword out of her startled hand with one swift movement. He pushed her against the wall, holding her wrist above her head

"Where is she?" the man spat, his cocoa-brown face inches from Rinilia's and his blade against her neck. "Where's the little shadow charmer girl?"

Rinilia twisted in the man's grasp and kicked at his shins, missing and hurting her arm in the process. The man tightened his grip around her wrist and held her against the wall, fire in his dark eyes.

"If you have harmed her at all, if you—"

"Your precious little girl is dead!" Rinilia seethed. "As far as you're concerned, she's gone forever!"

The man pressed his sword harder against her throat. "What did you do to her?"

"I did nothing!"

"_Where is she?"_

Rinilia let out a short scream of frustration and tried to bite the man. He twisted her arm around and pushed her again, now with her face to the wall. Rinilia kept struggling, kicking and turning.

"I don't know!" she cried eventually, giving up. "She escaped! All the children escaped! I don't know where they went!"

The man growled and pushed her harder against the wall.

"Let go of me, you madman!" Rinilia screamed. "I don't know where she is! Get off me!"

The pressure on Rinilia's back and neck was released. She gasped for breath and fell to her knees on the floor, breathing heavily and massaging the sore spots on her body.

Rinilia turned her head around. The man was gone, with no clues or signs showing his means of exit. Rinilia stood up and adjusted her ponytail.

"Lost another one," she whispered to herself. "Not one word of this to the others."

XIXIXIX

The clouds felt cold and wet, yet light and soothing against Bradley's face as he ascended through the sky on Raxtus's back. The dragon had objected to Bradley riding him like this, insisting his scales were too spiky or there was nothing to hold on to or it would be embarrassing, but Bradley convinced him.

"There's my friend Dylan's house," Bradley pointed out. He wasn't riding Raxtus the way he would ride a horse—he wasn't even sitting down. His bare feet were positioned carefully on one side of the line of large spines running down the middle of Raxtus's back, and his left hand was gripping the largest of these spines for support. His right hand was being used for mainly pointing and shielding his eyes from the late morning sun.

"You might want to use both hands for this maneuver," Raxtus advised. Bradley gripped Raxtus's scales with his other hand and held tight as the dragon twisted in midair, shot downward like a bullet, flipped twice, climbed back up, and did one last loop before stopping to check if his passenger remained intact.

"You fly off there?" Raxtus asked.

Bradley shakily straightened himself, his knuckles white from holding on so hard. His face was in a wide grin. "That was so freaky. Can you do it again?"

Raxtus paused and looked up for a moment, as if listening for something. "It can wait. Lena needs you."

"What?"

"She just told me. Telepathically. Fairy magic stuff."

"Oh."

As Raxtus turned and began flying back toward the house, Bradley thought about the last few days. Less than a week ago, he had been avoiding chores, ignoring homework, and goofing off with his friends at school, just like a normal boy his age. Now his life had been threatened several times, he just discovered he has some awesome magic powers or something, and here he was riding on the back of a freaking dragon!

Raxtus lowered himself towards the balcony where Lena stood, and Bradley slid off, landing softly on the wooden deck.

"'Sup?" he asked coolly.

Lena stroked Raxtus's metallic head and he flew off. She turned to Bradley.

"I think there's something wrong with Joy," Lena said solemnly, her silvery blue eyes concerned and serious.

Bradley resisted reaching down to pick out the sliver he had gotten on his foot from jumping off of Raxtus onto the rough wood. "What kind of...wrong?"

Lena brushed her bangs to the side. Her hair was so pale blonde that it was almost white, and it was currently kept in a ponytail on the side of her head. She was dressed in a purple "Team Jacob" t-shirt and blue jeans, both borrowed from Alexis.

"I'm not sure exactly. Shadow charmer stuff. There were these whispers coming from her room, but I don't think it was all her talking. When I asked and tried to offer help, she just told me to go away."

"What were the whispers saying?"

Lena sat down in one of the chairs set out and closed her eyes. "She was talking about the night of the falling stars. You know, the one when Rinilia and those other guys were gonna…you know."

Bradley nodded, wondering if it would seem shallow if he tried fixing his hair during this time.

"Anyway, she was telling someone that they had to wait. She said, 'when the stars fall, you will rise.' I knocked on the door and then she started talking about 'the shining princess'—"

"That's you, right?" Bradley said. "Cus with your grandma being the Fairy Queen and stuff and Officer Kent said you were super shiny…"

"Yeah," Lena said, folding her hands in her lap. Bradley noticed how long and elegant her fingers looked. "But, you know, I'm kinda scared. The meteor shower's tonight and something bad's coming. I don't know what, but I think it's trying to use Joy to help it."

"You think she's being possessed or something?"

"Maybe. I don't know."

"Did you talk to your uncle? He's a shadow charmer too, right? Maybe whispers like that are a regular thing for those guys."

"I tried that," Lena lamented. "He's too busy talking to the other grownups. He never does that. He's always available when I need to talk."

Her voice was getting choked. _Okay, not helping, _Bradley thought. _How can I help?_

"Sorry I can't think of anything helpful," he said, mentally berating himself for being an idiot.

Lena sighed. "That's okay. It feels good to tell someone, anyway."

"No problem."

As Lena stood up and went back into the house, Bradley hated himself both for not saying anything clever, witty, impressive or helpful, and for caring so much about something so superficial. Suddenly, an idea struck him.

"Hey, wait a second," he said. Lena paused and turned towards him.

"How about a ride?" he asked suavely, with a cool half-smile. "I bet Raxtus has room for two. It'll be fun, take your mind off things."

Lena smiled. "That'd be pretty great."

XIXIXIX

"So then he went and made this huge giant white explosion thing that was like super epic and all the Dementors were like 'Aaah!' and then when he left he's like 'Haha that was me I'm so awesome' and Hermione's just like 'Dude that was so freaky' and then later when they went back Ron was just like 'What the heck you were there and now you're over there' and like freaking out. And then in the fourth movie they went to this giant Quidditch competition…"

Alexis pulled on the hairbrush a little bit harder, trying to get the tangles out of Joy's hair without hurting her, all the while chatting about Harry Potter, which Joy had somehow never heard of.

"Okay, I'm done brushing it," Alexis announced, pausing her summary of the Goblet of Fire. "Now do you want it in like a French braid or maybe two braids down the side or I could do a fishtail?"

Joy shrugged. "It makes no difference to me. Please, keep talking. This tournament sounds intriguing."

Alexis divided Joy's long black hair into three parts and started weaving them into a braid. "So anyway, everyone's really mad that they have to be seventeen to do it, so then Fred and George make this potion thing to make them older and it works until they turn like really old and then they're just like wrestling on the ground and they're all with these long white beards and Hermione's like 'Told you so, you idiots' and then—"

Joy tensed, sitting up straight and cutting off Alexis's monologue. She began shaking and muttering something that Alexis couldn't make out.

"Hey, are you okay?" Alexis asked, dropping Joy's braided hair and moving to see her face.

"You must wait. I cannot let you out yet, there only a few hours left! You must wait!"

Alexis put her hand on Joy's shoulder. "Hey, calm down, it's okay, it's—"

Joy turned around and lashed out, striking Alexis across the cheek with her hand. Alexis fell back, frightened.

"Joy, what's going on?" she asked panickedly. "What's wrong? Stop it!"

"The night approaches too slowly," Joy hissed, her voice not her own. "I have waited over twenty years for this, and my patience has run out!"

The room plunged into darkness, and Alexis shivered as the temperature began to drop rapidly.

"Stop it, Joy! Stop! Somebody, help! There's something wrong with Joy! Help me!"

Alexis screamed. Blackness began to converge around Joy, then swirled out in icy tendrils toward Alexis.

"If the night of the falling stars will not come to me willingly," Joy threatened, "then I shall have to bring it here by force."


	15. Shining Through the Shadow

"Sure beats getting carried, huh?" Bradley said with a half-smile.

Lena grinned and shook back her loose hair in the wind. "This is so amazing. You rock, Raxtus!"

"I try," Raxtus said. He turned and did a barrel roll in midair, catching Lena off guard and making her grab Bradley's hand to keep from falling off.

"Sorry about that," Raxtus apologized. "I'll warn you next time I do a stunt."

Bradley started to pull his hand away, feeling awkward, but Lena held tight. She smiled at him.

"All right, let's get back to the house," Raxtus , turning back. "It's getting dark pretty fast."

"Dark?" Lena's smile shrunk into worry. "But it's not even noon yet. It can't be getting dark."

But Raxtus was right—the sky was quickly becoming black. Stars began to dot the stygian surface and the moon shone brightly, nearly full. As Raxtus flew back to Bradley's house, the dots became streaks, stars falling to the ground. There was no sign of the sun going down—the sky had changed almost immediately from late morning to the darkest hour of the night.

"Oh, no," Bradley whispered as his house came into view.

The entire building had been reduced to rubble, with everything else as far as they could see completely gone. Out of the many people who had been lodging in that house just a few hours ago, only four remained: two adults and two children. The darkness cloaking the sky and the ground seemed to be emanating from one of the children.

"Oh my God," Lena breathed, a phrase that she tried never to use. "It's Joy."

Raxtus stopped. "Where'd everyone go?"

Bradley shook his head in disbelief. "No. No, no, no! She…they…"

"They're all gone," Lena muttered, squeezing Bradley's hand.

"Except for us. And three others."

With grim uncertainty, Lena wondered who her friend had left alive. Two adults and a child—who was spared?

"I feel weird," Raxtus pointed out, descending a little bit. "My head…it's kind of…"

Lena put both of her hands on Raxtus's back. "What's going on?"

Bradley moved forward, toward Raxtus's head. "Something's wrong. It's the darkness around the house—it's changing him. It's like…the fairy magic inside him, it's losing power."

Lena looked up at Bradley. "What does that mean for us?"

"Not good."

Raxtus jerked upward suddenly, startling Lena and Bradley. They lost their grip and started sliding down his back. Lena grabbed one of Raxtus's spikes with one hand, holding onto Bradley with her other hand. The weight hanging from her fingers, combined with the shape of the scale and the speed Raxtus was flying, cut painfully through the skin on her hand, causing silver blood to flow.

"Without the fairy magic in him, he'll think like a normal dragon!" Bradley called up. "And normal dragons do not like people!"

"I noticed!" Lena screamed. "Can't you some dragon brother thing to make him stop?"

"You can't expect me to be a master at this stuff! I just found out about it yesterday!"

Raxtus roared and twisted, slicing Lena's hand even more. She yelled out in pain.

"I can't hold on!" she shouted as Raxtus turned and twisted in an attempt to shake them off his back. "It's gonna rip my fingers off!"

"Don't let go!"

Lena's other hand was getting sweaty. Bradley started to slip out of her grasp. He reached up with his free hand and grabbed her forearm, inadvertently pulling down harder.

"I can't—"

Her hopeless cry turned into a shriek as Raxtus shot upward into the air and turned upside down—the last straw for her tired, injured fingers. Bradley and Lena fell screaming towards the ruined house, and Raxtus turned and flew away, feeling only annoyance.

The ground was coming closer. Lena squeezed her eyes shut and held tight to Bradley's arm.

"How kind of you to join us," said a small voice.

Lena opened her eyes and drifted softly to the ground. She couldn't feel the comforting pressure of Bradley's hand around her arm—Bradley was gone, completely vanished. In front of her, Joy—still wearing Alexis's green pajamas—hovered a few feet above the ground in the center of a whirlwind of blackness. Three figures stood statue-like behind Joy, with thick black strands curling around them and obscuring their facial features. The little skin that showed through the aphotic threads was ice-white.

"You're just in time," Joy said, her voice reverberating ethereally through the darkness that swirled around her. "I've only just begun."

Tendrils of blackness shot from the large mass that surrounded Joy and circled around Lena, freezing her skin wherever it touched her. She stood, paralyzed, as Joy smiled maliciously.

"You four might consider yourselves lucky," Joy announced to everyone who stood around her, "because you have been spared. Or perhaps you feel guilty, for the suffering you have caused. Perhaps some of you think I will let you survive, and others anticipate a cruel, agonizing demise."

Lena fought to move her fingers, trying to reach the pocket where she kept her communication coin.

"Here you are, now. Two men of the worst sort, the two who caused the most pain to a child they may not have known; and two young girls whose ignorant kindness cost them the world. The stubborn young prince, fighting to escape his prison, hating and scorning the little slave girl who kept him alive. Your loathing towards me brought about the death of all you love. The stupid little boy, trying to be a hero, thinking his stolen sword would end the most powerful demon to ever exist. Your foolishness bought about the greatest agony I have ever experienced—and twenty-four years of it."

_Dad's still alive, _Lena thought. _And Uncle Seth._ Her coin would still work—if she could force herself to move.

"And the young girls," Joy said, "the poor little girls who thought they could befriend a real shadow charmer. Alexis Blaskenjoom, a chattering little brat, knowing nothing and only trying to be friendly. You are nothing of importance, an insignificant mortal. And yet, I cannot bring myself to destroy you as I destroyed your world."

Joy turned to Lena. "And you, my fellow prisoner, my helping guide, the one who gave me a name, the shining princess who thought of me as her friend. How I wish I could make you my ally in bringing about the eternal night. You are strong, you are clever, you would be an excellent shadow queen. But it cannot be—you are a princess of light. Your family is the brightest in the world—a plague upon me and my followers. Pity. You will have to perish with the others."

That was all the motivation Lena needed.

"NO!" she shouted, her black bindings shrinking away. "I won't let you do this!"

Joy frowned. "What power do you have against my mistress?"

Lena clenched her fists and stepped through her friend's tenebrous whirlwind. The darkness faltered a little when she first touched it, but then it came back on even stronger, pushing Lena out.

"You're not like this!" Lena yelled, trying to push through the blackness to reach Joy. "You're not going to destroy this world!"

"How can you know?" Joy argued angrily. "You know nothing of me!"

"Maybe not." Lena lifted her head. The wind generated by Joy's power whipped her white-blonde hair around her face. "Maybe I don't know you. But I know that you really are my friend."

She took a few steps further. The tendrils circling the others wavered and resurged. Visible white light began to shine from Lena's skin, weakening the shadowy tornado around her.

"Maybe you don't think I'm your friend. Maybe you don't think I can be your friend. Maybe I'm not."

Joy thrust her hand toward Lena, shooting black strands at her. They dissolved when they touched Lena's radiant shine, as she continued toward Joy.

"You cannot defy my mistress!" Joy screamed, her voice different. "On October 21st, five people will perish in crimson flames! That still stands!"

Red fire erupted around Bracken, Seth, and Alexis, who were still standing paralyzed. Lena's skin tingled with heat, and even Joy was beginning to burn.

"I am the darkness, the fire, the demon, the end!" Joy's eyes looked wild, nearly mad. "I will burn through this tiny child's body and free myself! I will rule as empress of the night!"

"That's not you!" Lena cried, reaching out her hand to reach Joy. "That's not Joy!"

The searing scarlet flames inched along Lena's outstretched arm. She tried to ignore the pain, letting the tears of hurt and fear drip down her face. Joy shouted wordlessly and raised her arms, trying to strengthen the shadow she had created.

"I am the shining princess," Lena choked out, taking hold of Joy's cold hand. "I am stronger than whatever has taken over you! You're stronger than this, Joy!"

Lena took both of her friend's hands and pulled her closer, spreading the flames and the light.

"You are my best friend, Joy! _And I will not lose you!"_

Lena squeezed Joy's hands, and the light around them exploded.

XIXIXIX

A few birds chirped in the light October air. Sunlight streamed through the window. Pancakes sizzled on the griddle.

"Lena! Come down for breakfast!" Kendra called.

Bracken strolled into the kitchen and gave his wife a quick kiss on the cheek. "How're the pancakes? Almost done?"

"There's some already on a plate on the table. Could you go upstairs and wake Lena up? I've been calling her for a while."

Bracken grabbed a pancake and tossed it from hand to hand to cool it as he headed upstairs. Halfway up, his coin tingled. Lena was contacting him. He took out the coin and took a bite of his pancake.

_Hey, if you're awake you should come down or pancakes. They're really good._

There was a pause, then Lena responded, _Daddy? I'm scared. I don't know what's going to happen, but I'm gonna fix everything._

_You all the way awake? Come get some pancakes, you don't have to fix anything._

_I can't hear if you're responding. You're kind of paralyzed right now. This is just a message. But if you're okay…I'm not. I don't think I'm gonna make it through this. But you will. And Mom, and Uncle Seth, and Bradley and his family, and Officer Kent, and everyone. And Raxtus will be himself again. But I'll probably be gone when you get this. Just…I'm scared. Thanks for everything, Dad. I love you. Tell Mom I love her too._

The message ended. Bracken put the coin back in his pocket, confused and worried, and headed the rest of the way up the stairs and into Lena's room.

When he opened the door, Lena's bed was empty. The room was just as messy as it had been the night before, but its owner was nowhere to be seen.


	16. Memories Lost and Found

Alexis awoke gasping for breath.

She was in her bed. Her own bed, in her own room, in her own house. Her own hot pink bedspread, her own poster-covered walls, her own fantasy-novel-stuffed bookcase. Alexis threw off her blanket and leapt out of bed, running out of her room and down the stairs, into the kitchen, where her mom was getting ready to leave for work.

"Morning, Lex," her mom said, not looking up from her phone. "There's some cer—"

Alexis attacked her mother with an overexcited hug. "Omigosh Mom I'm so glad you're okay you were gone and then you were coming back but then Joy turned freaky and everything was just gone and then Lena came and we were all tied up and everyone was dead and we got lit on fire and then Lena's dad and her uncle disappeared like everyone else did and then Lena went and made this big explosion and then I woke up and we were at home and I'm so glad you're okay!"

Jennifer Blaskenjoom cautiously pulled her daughter away. "Are you feeling all right? Do you need to stay home from school today?"

"No," Alexis smiled. "I'm fine. I'm great. Wait a minute, how long have I been out? What day is it?"

"You've haven't been 'out' at all," Jennifer explained, confused. "It's just Wednesday. You have—"

"_Wednesday?"_ Alexis exclaimed. "I slept all the way to _Wednesday? _How can you say I haven't been out at all? That's four days! Wait—Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday—three days! How can you—"

"Oh, I see. Alexis, if you're trying to get an excuse to stay home, whatever," Jennifer said hurriedly, putting her cell phone in her purse and smoothing down her professional-looking outfit. "I've got a big meeting with Mr. Bidwell in a half hour and it takes just under that to get there so I've got to leave right now. I love you—"she gave her daughter a kiss on the head—"and if you need to stay home, your father will be home in an hour and he'll call the school. If not, you should get ready fast and get walking. Bye!"

Jennifer shifted her purse on her shoulder and walked out the door.

Alexis stood in confused silence, staring at the closed door. It had been three days since the explosion of light and darkness, and her mother wasn't fazed at all. All the destruction Joy had caused was completely undone.

Alexis sped into the living room, where the phone was. She quickly dialed her cousin's number.

"Hello?"

"Aunt Layla! You're okay too! Hi! It's Alexis! I need to talk to Bradley, like, ASARN!"

"Bradley's getting ready for school right now—what's ASARN?"

"As Soon As Right Now! It's an emergency!"

There was a pause where Alexis guessed her aunt was handing the phone to Bradley.

"You realize I'm right in the middle of breakfast?" Bradley said muffledly, probably through a mouthful of cereal.

"Yes! I know! And it's awesome! Do you know Lena's phone number? I need to—"

Bradley swallowed. "Who's Lena? One of your friends? Why—"

"No, she's your girlfriend, stupid. You two went for a ride on Raxtus right before Joy turned all evil and then she came back down but you didn't so I don't know if she—"

"Alexis, as usual, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Dude, I'm serious! Don't you remember? You guys all came on Saturday after you went missing and everyone was talking about magic and stuff and your parents—"

"Okay, look, if this is some kind of lame attempt at a joke, ha-ha, you got me, I gotta get ready for school. See ya."

Bradley hung up the phone and took another bite of his cereal.

"So what's the big emergency?" Layla asked.

Bradley shook his head. "Alexis needs some therapy or something."

XIXIXIX

In the second after Lena regained consciousness and before she opened her eyes, she noticed three things: One, her hand still hurt from the cuts Raxtus's scales had created. The blood was now drying into a dark silver scab. Two, she was no longer holding Joy's arms—Joy, in fact, was no longer with her. And three—there was a baby screaming very loudly, very high-pitched, and very close to her ear.

Lena opened her eyes and saw two thin, ragged children—a girl about six years old and a boy a year or two younger—running through a dense forest, their hands clasped tightly to each other's, to the sound of men shouting in the distance. The boy was whimpering quietly, and both children had tear stains running down their dark brown faces. There was no sign of the crying baby. Just as Lena moved through the green branches surrounding her to get closer to the children, a large man pushed forward and grabbed both of the screaming children in his muscular arms. Lena gasped and stepped back. Her foot hit against something—a rock, a tree root—and she tripped, falling backwards, not hitting the ground, but continuing to fall for several seconds as if an enormous hole had opened underneath her.

The hard, dusty ground that Lena fell onto knocked the wind out of her, and she struggled for a moment to find her breath. The forest was gone, replaced by a luxurious tent with white cloth walls rimmed with gold silk and dozens of multicolored cushions. Two couches and a large wooden desk also filled the tent. At the desk, a tall man with short black hair and comfortable yet expensive-looking clothing stood with his back to Lena. The tall man was facing the muscular figure from the forest, who was holding two ropes in one hand.

"I promised you some new slaves, and in return you promised me gold," the bigger man growled. "Some of your magic gold will do."

Lena stood up and rubbed her wounded hand. "Um, hello? Do you know how I got here?"

The man at the desk shook his head and clucked his tongue. "It seems you misunderstand, Funi," he said smoothly, with a heavy accent Lena didn't recognize. "You promised me ample help for my preserve, and I promised you commensurate payment. We did not discuss such details."

Lena cleared her throat loudly, in an attempt to be noticed. Neither man acknowledged her. She walked toward the men and saw that the large man—Funi—had his ropes tied around the necks of the children he had captured in the forest.

"What do you mean?" Funi asked angrily. "What other payment could you have to offer?"

"Again, you misunderstand."

"Hello, people, can you hear me?" Lena said, confused and annoyed. She stepped between the men. "Earth to slave traders, am I invisible?"

"I am not talking about alternate payment," the rich man explained, taking no notice of the frustrated girl taking large measures to get his attention. "I'm talking about the ample help you offered. I was not asking for you to acquire some new slaves for me, though I appreciate your effort. But these children you have gathered are not very strong—you, however…"

"You don't mean…" The realization crossing Funi's face quickly turned to indignation. "You can't do that! I will not—"

"You will work here alongside all of those you have brought to me." The man walked around the desk and opened a back exit out of the tent. "You will take these children outside and Kuro will put you all to work."

"I won't—"

"Yes, you will. You will be much safer working for me than arguing against me. Do not forget the many creatures and powers waiting for my permission to strike and feed. Oh, and speaking of feeding, the girl can go to the dungeons. Ever since the last girl was lost in the catacombs, the prisoners have been getting hungry. Kuro will know where to send her."

Funi yanked the ropes in his hand and stormed out the back flap, the children scrambling to keep up without getting choked.

Lena screamed and kicked the table, confused and angry that nobody had noticed her. She brushed her white-blonde hair out of her face and looked toward the flap of the tent where Funi and the children had left. Acting without really thinking, Lena brushed aside the cloth, stepped out, and promptly fell down another hole, just like the one she had fallen into before.

This time Lena landed on her right shoulder on a cold stone floor. There was a disturbing _crunch _and pain exploded up and down her arm.

"Oww!" Lena screamed, clutching her shoulder. She managed to sit up and surveyed her surroundings. She was in a dim hallway lit by a few torches on the dark stone walls. Several thick, heavy wooden doors lined the walls on either side on the hallway, each door with a barred peephole at the top and a wide slot at the bottom.

"Hello?" Lena called, her voice echoing in the empty hallway.

"Enjoy your meal," said a small, familiar voice down the hall.

Lena turned around, still cradling her injured shoulder. "Joy?"

The girl sliding a woven mat through the slot at the bottom of one of the doors was clearly Lena's friend, but a little bit younger than the Joy she knew. Joy was holding an undecorated metal pitcher in one hand and a large wooden box tucked under her other arm. She was wearing the same simple black dress that Lena had first seen her in, but it was in much better condition than before.

"Joy!"

Joy, like the men in the tent, took no notice of Lena, placing something from the box onto the mat at the next door and sliding it through the slot.

"Enjoy your meal," she repeated.

"Not likely," mumbled a voice from inside the cell.

Lena rubbed her shoulder and tried to stand. "Joy, why can't you hear me?"

Joy filled up the next mat. "Enjoy—"

A pale hand reached out from under the door and grabbed Joy's hand as she slid the mat through the slot. She gasped and tried to pull away, but the other hand held fast.

"Who are you? You're new," a voice said from inside the cell. The voice sounded like that of a teenage boy. "You're not familiar."

"Please let go," Joy whimpered. "I need to deliver—"

"Who are you?" the voice asked forcefully. "Tell me your name!"

"I'm Aisha," Joy said tentatively. "Please, let me—"

"Get me out," the boy in the cell demanded. "You're a slave, I'm a prisoner. Get me out and we'll both go free."

"I can't." Joy's voice sounded timid, on the brink of tears. "I can't get you out. I'm—"

"I have to get out of here! Get me out of here!"

Joy pulled as hard as she could and wrenched her hand away. She staggered back and cautiously moved to the next cell door.

"You must forgive Bracken," said the woman in the next cell. Her voice was like honey; thick, sweet, and syrupy. "He's only been here a week or two. Give him a few more days and he'll soften."

Joy nodded and filled the woman's tray. "Enjoy your meal."

Lena stepped closer to her friend, only to fall for what seemed like forever to another forgotten moment.


	17. Aisha's Sacrifice

After the past three falls had been painful and jarring, Lena was doing her best to land on her feet this time. Though she landed successfully, her worn-out converse sneakers were not good shock absorbers, and her feet slammed painfully onto another stone floor. Her legs crumpled underneath her, and her injured shoulder hit the ground, despite her attempt to protect it from more harm.

Lena struggled to her feet and looked up. She seemed to be in the same dungeon as before, in a large cell with a large wooden box in the center. A steel circle surrounded the box, and a rope ladder descended from a trapdoor in the ceiling.

"Joy?" she called, looking around the empty cell for her friend. She jumped back in surprise as the trapdoor opened and a small brown face peered down.

"Get back up here! I'll go down first."

The face disappeared and was replaced by a pair of feet descending the ladder; followed by legs, a torso, shoulders, arms, and a head. It was Joy, a little bit older than she had been the last time, and a boy a year or two younger who Lena guessed was the brother Joy had spoken of. Joy and her brother stepped onto the dusty stone floor and moved toward the box, careful to stay outside the circle.

"What's in the big box?" the boy asked. Joy quickly shushed him. Lena thought for a minute, and then remembered the name Joy had told her when they had been imprisoned so long ago (or so it felt). Joy's little brother, Geteye.

Joy walked around the box. "The door's over here. Come over here, Geteye, I want to show you something."

"What?" Geteye rushed eagerly to his sister.

"It's in the box." Joy pointed to a small protuberance on the box's door. "Do you see that little bit sticking out there?"

Geteye nodded.

"That's the doorknob. Now, you need to step very carefully over the circle, open the door, and go inside. When you do, there'll be a surprise for you."

"What kind of surprise?"

Joy hesitated, but quickly smiled. "Treats and food of all sorts. Pistachios and dates and cocoa beans and figs and peppers and roast lamb and maybe even some custard apples."

Geteye smiled eagerly. "Can I go right now?"

Joy nodded. Lena worriedly shook her head. She recognized the box—there was a similar one in the dungeons at Fablehaven that she had seen once when exploring. It was a Quiet Box, for dangerous prisoners.

So why was Joy tricking her brother, whom she had spoken of so lovingly, into entering it?

Geteye carefully stepped over the metal ring on the floor and nearly skipped to open the Quiet Box. When the door opened, he peered into the dark space before entering.

"Where's all the food?"

"It's a big box. You have to go all the way in."

Geteye stepped up and entered the box. "I still don't see anything."

"Try closing the door."

Geteye turned around to face his older sister. "Aisha, are you—"

Joy interrupted him by leaping across the metal ring and pushing the door closed. Realizing the trick, Geteye shouted and struggled.

"Aisha, let me out! You tricked me! Let me—"

The door to the Quiet Box closed with a thud, and the little boy's shouts immediately ceased. Joy scrambled to the opposite wall as fast as she could as the box turned and opened.

Four eyes—two silvery blue and the other two so dark brown they were nearly black—widened to at least twice their size as the Quiet Box's prisoner emerged.

Intimidated but still curious, Joy stepped back from the hunched, shadowy figure shuffling out of its longtime prison. The young girl furrowed her dark eyebrows. "Who are you? Kasse said you were a powerful demon. What kind of disguise is this?"

The prisoner hissed. Joy took a step back further. As the prisoner lifted its head and raised one gnarled hand, Lena realized who her friend had just set free.

Lena screamed.

"No! Joy, no! Don't let—"

Joy let out a yelp and covered her ears, cutting off Lena's desperate shouts. "Stop! Who are you?"

The demon from the Quiet Box snarled, the wrinkled, purplish skin on her face contorting with disgust. "Foolish child. Do you not know the prisoner you have just released from decades of still, silent torment?"

"I have been told stories," Joy said nervously. "Tales of fear and devastation, cut short by a hero who captured the terrible Nagi Luna and put her in this prison. But, they said Nagi Luna was a fierce creature, a powerful demon—not a decrepit old woman. Who are you?"

Nagi Luna cackled, a raspy, uncomfortable sound, her toothless mouth opening wide. "You are a stupid little girl. Who taught you to place such judgment upon merely a feeble appearance? What an idiot child!"

Joy's countenance became indignant, but her tone remained cordial. "Forgive me for my incorrect assumption. But if the stories are true—"

"Yes, I am the sadistic demon who laid waste to many lands," Nagi Luna growled. "I am the fearsome creature who decimated a thousand armies. I am the terrible monster who leveled powerful mountains. I am the greatest, strongest, most feared being in all of creation. But who are you?"

"My name—"

"It is a simple question that needs no answering. I have seen your mind. You are Aisha, the little, orphaned slave girl, who heard stories and sacrificed the trust of her small, dependent little brother in order to see and perhaps converse with the most powerful demon in the world. But tell me, child—was it worth it?"

Joy's confident expression faltered. "Not exactly."

"Step inside my circle, girl, and I shall make it so. Come to me, and I can make you near as powerful as I. You could be free. You could promise eternal wealth and happiness for yourself and your precious brother. Come to me and we will both reach our true destiny to rule the world."

Joy hesitated. "How would that happen?"

"I can make you a shadow charmer. I can make you powerful. Enter my circle, child. Run to me."

Lena shook her head frantically. "No! Joy, no!"

Joy closed her eyes and stepped over the metal circle.

XIXIXIX

Sobs shook Lena's body as she wept both for the pain of falling jarringly from memory to memory and for the horror and sorrow in her friend's life. They had caught up to the present a few hours ago…had it been hours? Minutes? Days? Lena couldn't tell how time was passing. But after watching Joy continue her life as a slave, first to Living Mirage's caretaker and later to Nagi Luna, her life as a shadow charmer, her life as a runaway, and then as a prisoner, she didn't care how long she laid alone on the hard, dark surface she now rested on, crying and sobbing.

Feeling weak, Lena managed to quiet herself, sit up, and wonder where she was. She seemed to be on a hill, looking over a land of dark, barren soil, the vast emptiness interrupted now and then by sparse piles of rubble or black shapes on the ground that looked ominously like ravaged bodies of people or animals. A dull, warped, sickly-looking sun was slowly rising over the horizon, casting red light over the ugly scene. Somehow she could tell that she was not in one of Joy's memories, but somewhere else that wasn't quite real.

A sudden fit of dizziness hit her and Lena rubbed her head. The sound of small footsteps behind her drew Lena's attention as Joy walked up and sat beside her.

"This is my fault," Joy whispered sadly. "This is what I would have done, had you not stopped me. So much destruction and death."

"Can you see it?" Lena asked.

Joy nodded. "We have been traveling through each other's memories. You know that Nagi Luna took away my sight. She never said why. I assumed I had done something wrong, that my blindness was a punishment or a curse. But it was to keep me from shying away when I see what I have done. Right now, I wish to have it back."

Lena took Joy's hand. "It all disappears when you close your eyes."

Joy squeezed her eyes shut, and a tear dropped down her face. "Your life has been challenging. I can see your sadness and your fear and your loneliness, hidden behind confidence and humor and anger."

Lena laughed weakly, feeling sick to her stomach and a bit out of breath. "Wow. I did not know I was like that."

Joy opened her eyes and smiled in spite of the situation, but her happiness was short lived as she looked down and sighed. Her gaze returned to the scarlet sun rising higher in the dark red sky.

"You're dying, Lena," she announced after a moment. "You can tell. You're feeling weak, and sick, and dark, and you can't decide whether you feel like fainting or vomiting or both."

Lena nodded. "How did you know?"

"When Nagi Luna took control of my body, it took all of the light power in you to banish her out and destroy her," Joy explained. "That light traveled over the entire world, so powerful that no one will ever have a dark thought for several days. Unfortunately, that light was the very essence of your body, and now you're running low."

Lena's breath began to slow as realization and fear began to set in, but she didn't want to show it. "That went over the whole world?"

"Most of it went into me, in an effort to save me," Joy said softly. "I can give it back. But there is a catch."

Lena's vision began to twist and blur, and she swayed to one side. Joy caught her and took both her hands.

"Hold still," Joy instructed, her hands beginning to glow.

Lena started to pull away. "What's the catch?"

"It doesn't matter right now. I can save you."

"Joy, what is this going to do to you?"

Joy gave a half-smile. "I lied about that. My memories were never taken from me. But I do prefer Joy over Aisha."

"Tell me what this is going to do to you."

Joy closed her dark eyes as her hands began to glow brighter. The horrid scene below the hill was slowly vanishing, and Lena's strength was returning.

"You gave your life to save me," Joy whispered. "Now I give my light to save you."

"Joy, tell me what this is doing to you!" Lena commanded, her voice becoming a shout as the glow in Joy's hands traveled up Lena's arms and into her body.

"I am free of the demon and her power. But I am still a shadow charmer, and you are still the shining princess. It will take all the light in me to replace the light you lost."

Lena struggled to pull her hands away from Joy's as the glow filled her body and she realized what would happen. "No! I don't want to be your enemy!"

Joy closed her eyes as the last bit of light escaped her. "Farewell, my friend."

"No!"

But Lena's scream was lost as the rest of the dark, barren land disappeared, Joy's sacrificed light filled her up completely, and the world was swallowed up in white.


	18. Home

Matilda Dawson adjusted her glasses and scanned the classroom. Most of the children were slouching in their seats; many chatting with one another, some doodling on their desks, others staring blankly at the ceiling. Mrs. Dawson sighed at the vacation-induced apathy that was usually shown on Mondays rather than Wednesdays.

The bell rang, creating some motion among the tired classroom. A few students attempted to sit up straighter, while their classmates slouched even lower.

"All right, everyone, in your seats," Mrs. Dawson said loudly, in order to be heard over the students' chatter. Three girls slid off the tops of their desks and into their chairs.

"Thank you for your quick response." Mrs. Dawson adjusted her bejeweled eyeglasses and pulled out a hot pink attendance sheet. "Laurie Adams?"

"Here."

"Elizabeth Blanchard?"

"Here!"

"Alexis Blaskenjoom?"

"She's coming," announced Makenzie Rothbert. "I saw her running in the parking lot."

Mrs. Dawson marked Alexis as tardy. "Marty Coleman?"

"Peanut butter!"

A few students chuckled at Marty's outburst. Mrs. Dawson shook her head. "Zachar—"

"I'm here!" shouted Alexis, flying into the classroom, her face red and her brown hair a mess. She panted and fought to catch her breath. "Sorry I'm late!"

"Alexis, did you run all the way to school?" Mrs. Dawson asked, raising an eyebrow.

Alexis nodded and looked over the classroom. "I wanted to see if Lena was here…"

"Lena who?"

"Just Lena, she doesn't have a last name. The new girl, she just arrived last week. Like, exactly last week, on Wednesday." Alexis started walking to her seat, still talking. "By the way, what did I miss on Monday and Tuesday? Did we finish the Rikki-Tikki-Tavi stuff? Cus if we did I'll just check out a book and read it by—"

"Have you been reading my planbook?" Mrs. Dawson frowned. "We're not doing Rikki-Tikki-Tavi until next week."

"What?" Alexis furrowed her brow, and then her brown eyes widened as the pieces clicked together in her head. "Omigosh no wait a minute no yes omigosh it's not the Wednesday after the explosion, it's the Wednesday before! We got sent back! Lena's just starting today! But why does nobody remember? Why do only I remember? No, wait, that can't be it, no, is it?"

Alexis stopped, thought for a second, and stood up out of her seat. "No, cus everyone disappeared! Except me…and Lena and Joy, but where's Lena? I'm here, everyone's here, everyone that disappeared and me, but I didn't…"

"Alexis, please sit down," Mrs. Dawson said, a little worried. "What's gotten into you? What are you talking about?"

"No, wait, no, they're gone, they're both gone!" Alexis looked up at her teacher. All of her classmates were staring at her. "And nobody else remembers because nobody else survived! That's it! Omigosh they disappeared, so the memory disappeared!"

"Alexis, what—"

Alexis ignored her teacher and ran out the door, leaving all her school supplies on her desk.

XIXIXIX

"She's gone? She really, actually, absolutely gone? Are you sure?"

Bracken pursed his lips and rubbed the coin in his hand. "I can't reach her. There's just the message."

He took Kendra's hand in his and passed her the coin. "Do you want to hear it?"

Kendra blinked hard and swallowed, trying to hold back her tears, and ran her free hand across her vanished daughter's pale yellow bedsheet. She and Bracken were sitting up in Lena's empty bedroom, doing their best to figure it all out. "What was she even trying to do? What happened?"

Bracken shook his head "I don't know. But I'm sure it was important. She was saving us, and all the others she mentioned."

"But she didn't make it. And we can't remember it."

Kendra closed her eyes tightly. "She's only thirteen."

"You were only fifteen when we saved the world," Bracken tried to reassure her. "And you were prepared to not get through it."

"But we did get through it. And she didn't."

Kendra rested her head on Bracken's shoulder, and he stroked her hair comfortingly.

_Ding-dong._

They both looked up.

"Kendra? Er, Mrs. Sorenson? Or…Lena's mom?"

The voice was unfamiliar, and that of a teenage girl. Kendra sat up.

"Can I come in? It's about Lena. Is she there? Does she remember all the stuff that happened last week? Cus, if she doesn't, I do, and I think—"

Kendra and Bracken both sped down the stairs and threw the door open together. A brown-haired girl was standing on the front porch, out of breath, looking as if she had run a mile in four minutes.

"Oh, hi. I'm Alexis, Lena's friend from school. Well, kind of, cuz we technically met at school, but we didn't really become friends until her and Bradley went missing and then turned up at his house when I was there babysitting Jane and Ella so anyway us and you guys were all staying over at Bradley's house and that's where me and Lena really got to be friends, and Joy too, but anyway, that's not what I came here to talk about."

Kendra blinked. "What?"

"Is Lena here?"

"No."

"Crap. Do you guys remember what happened to her? Because I do, and nobody else so far does."

"No, we don't…who are you again?" Bracken asked.

"I'm Alexis Blaskenjoom and my aunt and uncle are Eternals, in case you're wondering why I'm connected to all this stuff. For some reason, the giant explosion that Lena caused made us go back in time and nobody remembers except me. And probably Lena and Joy too. So if you don't remember, we should probably all go sit down so I can explain it all. Oh, you never said, I can come in, right?"

XIXIXIX

"So you and pretty much everyone else were gone, just like disappeared or something, and you and me and Seth and later Lena were all paralyzed and tied up and the house was like fallen down and everything else was just like totally gone so then when Lena came she just like fell out of the sky or something and Joy made this big giant speech that I can't remember much of but it was about us and stuff so then Joy was talking to Lena and she's just like 'Oh too bad you're good and I'm evil you're gonna die' and Lena was just like 'Oh no you di-int" well not exactly like that but anyway Joy was making this big giant shadow thing…"

Bracken nodded, confused, trying to keep up as Alexis babbled on and on, mostly explaining what happened to Lena but occasionally diverging to other random topics, such as gossipy girls at her school or old celebrities who were hot when they were younger.

"But then you disappeared so I was like the only one left, and then Lena reached Joy all the way and made this huge-mondo-normous explosion of like pure awesomeness and then I just woke up in my room and now nobody remembers. And, like, a whole week's just disappeared. Well, three or four days. Idekay. Anyway, that's basically it."

"But where is she now?" Kendra asked, her brow furrowed.

Alexis shrugged. "I don't know. She's gone and no one remembers. You know, except me, cus everyone else disappeared and I didn't. Also, I don't know why nobody mentioned it before or why I didn't notice or whatever, but you guys look like teenagers or like college-age. Even though you said you were like super old. No offense. Is that coin thing supposed to be glowing like that? It's been like that for a while but you guys didn't notice and I didn't think to ask but—"

Bracken grabbed the glowing coin and stood up suddenly, knocking over his chair in excitement. Kendra stood up, too.

"Important, I'm guessing?" Alexis asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's better than important," Bracken grinned. "It's Lena."

_Dad? Daddy, I'm home._


	19. There'll Be Joy in the Morning

_My name is Lena. I got this journal for my sixth birthday and I've never used it—probably partially because it's got Hello Kitty on the cover. But also, I'm not really one for journal writing, but this past week really deserves writing about. So here goes._

_Dear Journal,_

_I'm not sure how to feel right now—if I should feel like my life's the best ever or that it totally sucks. My parents and I had to move for the third time in two years. So I had to start at a new school and make new friends, even though I didn't have time to make any real friends at my old school anyway. _

_So I got to my new school, had my first day, and got kidnapped by an evil magical creature on the way home._

_Magical creature? Yeah. Long story. Don't really feel like explaining._

_So anyway, I got trapped in a closet by some dudes who were using me as a ransom or something so they could kill my mom (another long story). There was also a girl in there, an eight-hundred-year-old little shadow charmer girl named Joy, and later a dragon brother around my age named Bradley. Joy, Bradley and me were able to escape with the help of a friend of the family. Then we stayed overnight at the home of a magic police officer, got attacked by a giant furry rhino thing, met up with my mom (teary reunion), then met up with my dad and my uncle (another teary reunion), then went to Bradley's house where his parents were going to save him from the dudes who captured us but then came with Raxtus and Officer Kent. So then we were all hanging out at Bradley's house, all happy and stuff, except Joy who was like possessed or something by an evil demon._

_Long story short, I saved the world from eternal death and darkness and as a thank-you, my best friend turned evil and my other best friend who might have become more than a friend doesn't have a clue who I am._

_Oh, I forgot about Alexis. She's Bradley's cousin and she's also in my class at school. She befriended Joy before Joy turned all possessed and stuff and she's the only one except me who remembers the whole thing._

_But I just got home and had yet another teary reunion with my family. Seems like all week it's been that way—near-death experience, crying and hugging, near-death experience, crying end hugging, et cetera. Alexis was there too, explaining to my mom and dad about everything. Pretty nice, right? Except for the fact that as soon as I was left alone, I found a note on my bed. From Joy. I'll tape it in here…_

Dear Lena,

Oh dear, dear Lena. How you must miss me. I must assume that you are home, the place you were before you were taken, as am I. However, I cannot tell you where that is. You shall have to wonder. But know that I am coming, and you will see me again.

Nagi Luna's power has been banished from my mind and the demon destroyed, but I will never be able to be your friend again. In order to save your life, I had to sacrifice all the light and goodness in myself. I am still a shadow charmer, now more than ever, and your genealogy makes us natural enemies. I wish I could say that I regret this, but I have lost the feelings of love and care for anyone, even my greatest friend.

Well, past friend. I will seek you out, Lena, and not for the reasons that you might search for me. I will give you no more warning, but trust me; you will not want to see me.

Farewell, dear Lena.

-Aisha (Joy)

_So yeah. My best friend's evil and coming to get me._

_Thankfully, Alexis still remembers, and she can try to help Bradley. If everything goes right, he'll believe us and believe that I'm his friend and possibly eventually hopefully girlfriend. We'll be going over to talk to him and his family in a few days, and we might also be able to contact Officer Kent and tell her what happened. Joy said that my light made nobody have a dark thought for a long time, and that means we won't have to worry about Rinilia and everyone trying to destroy the Eternals. Because apparently I made them all temporarily nice. _

_That's kind of weird to think about._

_But that means we'll all be safe while we try to explain everything. Without any crazies trying to murder our parents/brother. Heh—had to smile to myself for that—those good old days when it was hard to go a full day without a life-threatening experience to deal with. _

"You okay in there, hon?"

Lena set down her pen and looked toward the door. "Yeah, I'm just writing."

Kendra pushed open her daughter's bedroom door. "Writing what?"

Lena held up the hot pink Hello Kitty notebook and smiled. "Remember this old thing?"

Kendra laughed and grabbed the journal, flipping through the mostly blank pages. "Worried you might forget what's happened?"

"Never," Lena shook her head. "There is no way I could ever forget all that."

"I did."

"Yeah, but…you didn't…it wasn't…"

"Wasn't exactly my adventure," Kendra finished, smiling kindly. "I've had my share of saving the world. It's your turn now."

"I'd rather not, thanks."

"Maybe you'd feel better about saving the world if you were talking to Uncle Seth. He had a blast at Zzyzx. Although, my killing Gorgrog was pretty epic."

Lena laughed. "I have the weirdest but coolest family ever."

"I completely agree," Kendra said, tousling Lena's white-blonde hair. Lena smiled as her mother walked out, and then picked her pen back up.

_I nearly died at least four times. My friends nearly died along with me, and now they don't even know they're my friends. But it was fun. It was fun plotting escapes, flying over town, having a cockatrice crash through the side of Officer Kent's house, careening down the street with Joy at the wheel, seeing Uncle Seth trash-talk a giant rhinoceros, riding on Raxtus with Bradley, listening to Alexis talk and talk and talk…_

_Life after near-death isn't perfect. There's still a lot more to come. Thing's aren't always like in the movies, where you save the world and then everything is perfect—uness the sequel picks up after a cliff-hanger._

_It was fun while it lasted. It's fun to remember it. And there's more fun coming up while we try to make everyone remember._

_So I guess that's the joy of the adventure._


	20. Sequel Preview: Serve the Dragon Lord

**Author's Note: So I thought it was kind of weird to end a story on Chapter Nineteen. Yes, it's over. But the good news is…IT'S SEQUEL TIME!**

**This chapter is both to wrap up **_**Destroy the Human Keys**_** with a nice little purple bow and to give a little preview about the sequel—**_**Serve the Dragon Lord**_**—in which, as stated in Lena's journal entry, Alexis and Lena will try to recover Bradley's memory. As not stated in Lena's journal, they will be doing so in a new place that none of them have been before—but a place YOU have been. A place fraught with traps, fear, and deadly creatures that can only be tamed by few rare, talented individuals.**

**Basically, the dragon sanctuary Wyrmroost (mostly because that was my favorite Fablehaven book).**

**Lena, Alexis, and Bradley will also be joined by a teenage rookie dragon tamer/adventurer named Will, who will try to act as their guide through the sanctuary. Along with the dangers of Wyrmroost, Lena will also have to beware of Aisha, who is still coming to destroy her. **

**In comparison to **_**Destroy the Human Keys, **__**Serve the Dragon Lord **_**will have less crying and more laughing—replacing many of the teary reunions with random soliloquys from Alexis and flirty wisecracks from Will. And of course, Bradley being completely clueless. Again.**

**I've been planning this since I was halfway through **_**Destroy the Human Keys, **_**so I'm really excited to finally start it. **

**And yes, there will be some cute little Lena and Bradley romance.**

**So be prepared.**

_**~LavieQ**_


End file.
